The Hunter Returns
by child-prodigy
Summary: Chapter... pant.. 12.. pant... up... dies Haven is trapped in a Time Stop while the world crashes down around their ears. Now the only one who can save them doesn't even know they exist... HollyArtemis. (Eternity Code spoiler)
1. Parting is such sweet sorrow

ATTENTION!! Just incase you neglected to read the summary (wags a finger at you) then I will say this again because it is IMPORTANT!! If you have NOT read Eternity Code, and you do NOT want the story SPOILED for you, DO NOT READ THIS STORY!! If you don't care- fine! Go ahead! Enjoy!  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own any characters. SURPRISE!!  
  
A/N: Hello. Read this story ok? I promise you'll like it, and I really mean that. Because I'm not writing Mary Sue or using any original characters (I don't think. well I'm not gonna put in any perfect blonde girls who are super smart and come to rescue Artemis ok? I might make up a fairy character or a bad guy or something though.. I dunno. Ok. No original MAIN characters.. I hate those.) And guess what else? I know how to make sure characters don't loose their personalities! And I also know how to use description and have a plot!! CLAP FOR ME! Lol, j/k you don't have to. yet;) But you will. I can guarantee it. MWAHAHA! Ahem.. on with the story.  
  
-FOWL MANOR-  
  
Holly watched Artemis's life being written in green symbols on the screen.  
  
"This doesn't feel right," she commented. "If he found us once, he could find us again.  
  
Especially if he goes back to being the monster he was."  
  
Foaly tapped commands into an ergodynamic keyboard. "Maybe. But next time we'll be ready."  
  
Holly sighed. "It's a pity, because we were almost friends."  
  
The centaur snorted. "Sure. Like you can be friends with a viper."  
  
Holly suddenly shut her helmet visor, hiding her eye.  
  
"You're right, of course. We could never have been friends. It was circumstance that pushed us together, nothing more."  
  
Foaly patted her shoulder. "That's the girl. Keep your ears up. Where are you going?"  
  
"Tara," replied Holly. "I'm going to fly. I need the fresh air."  
  
"You don't have the clearance for a flight," objected Foaly. "Root will have your badge."  
  
"For what?" said Holly, firing up her wings. "I'm not supposed to be here, remember?"  
  
And she was gone, flying in a lazy loop through the entrance hall. She cleared the main door with inches to spare, climbing quickly into the night sky. For a second her slim frame was backlit by the full moon, and then she disappeared, vibrating out of the visible spectrum.  
  
~Artemis Fowl: The Eternity Code  
  
-TARA-  
  
Speed was what she needed right now- lots of speed. She flew faster and faster as though the pressure would push out all of her stress and sadness. And so she flew- faster than she ever had before and probably faster than any fairy had flown before. If Root knew about this she would be out of the LEP faster than you could say "stink worm".  
  
Her hair whipped against her face and tears streamed behind her. She had discarded her helmet sometime ago because it had been fogging up, but even without it the tears blurred her vision so, that she couldn't see anything past the end of her pointed nose.  
  
Captain Holly Short dived low and pulled up only inches from the ground, although she had been considering just plowing straight into the dirt and rock and putting an end to her misery. Instead she flew lazily up to a sturdy branch protruding from an old oak tree and sat there, blinking back more tears.  
  
She just sat there; shoulders slumped, lip quivering, big tears rolling down her cheeks and thinking. She began to sob and her sobs grew into louder moans of sorrow which turned into miserable wails that would leave your ears ringing if you happened to pass by at that moment. Holly's cries changed every now and then as memories flew through her head. Sometimes she would fall into fits of maniacal laughter or tantrums of rage in which she would stand up and beat on the tree trunk until she was too tired to continue or a new memory floated into her mind.  
  
After about twenty minutes Holly was sure she had no more tears to cry and she simply collapsed onto the branch; her body convulsing in dry sobs. She had calmed down a bit now after using up every drop of energy that was in her. Her eye lids fell shut as she drifted into a quiet place in her mind.  
  
"What am I doing?" said a quiet little voice, "Its not like he's died or anything. He's not totally out of my life."  
  
"No," Holly Short confessed, "but I'll never be able to talk to him again. He won't even know I exist."  
  
"That wouldn't have bothered you so much two years ago."  
  
It was true, two years ago- or almost three now - Holly would have been happy to have Artemis Fowl out of her life. He had been an inconsiderate monster, poisoned by greed. He gave even Mud Men a bad name. He had tricked the fairy race out of 15 million dollars, stolen their technology and sent several officers into psychological therapy with his bigger-than-a-house body guard, Butler. The worst thing was though; she had been his pawn, his game piece, his pathetic childish toy through the whole thing!  
  
After the Arctic Incident though, Holly had come to enjoy the boy's company- although she would never admit to it. Even if he was extremely annoying, he had changed a lot and had finally found something like feelings buried deep in his being. However, now, after the whole C Cube and Spiro affair, Holly was finding that she cared a lot more about the Fowl boy than she had thought. And now that Artemis was being mind wiped she felt as though she couldn't live knowing that Fowl didn't even know about her. Somehow she felt that Artemis had to know her; she couldn't bear to even come visit and watch him, shielded, in some secret corner of the room and have him not know of her presence.  
  
Holly gritted her teeth. She was an LEP officer- Captain! She couldn't be lying on an old branch crying her eyes out. She would move on. She would come to Fowl Manor to see Artemis once in a while; just to see how he was doing, and she would do her job.  
  
She stood and hopped from the branch, falling a few feet before punching a button on her humming-bird wings causing six sets of wings- three to each side - that reflected the light of the moon sending tiny rainbows dancing across the landscape and she rose into the air. Swooping low to snatch up her LEP helmet she headed back towards Haven.  
  
-- A/N: Wow! I didn't know that I would last that long with a serious story! Actually I have full confidence in myself that I can write a good story so don't abandon me! This DOES happen to be my first serious story. and my first Artemis Fowl story! I usually write comedy for Lord of the Rings. Umm, I have to kind of build up to the story but trust me, this story has got a plot. I have a few chapters all stored up in my head right now so I just hafta write them. I'll try to get another one done now. It'll either be a full chapter taking place within Haven or part Haven and part Fowl Manor. 


	2. In the beggining

A/N: Ok, my summary kinda got cut off. So I'll just tell you the summary here k?  
  
Haven, the home circuit of the LEP is trapped in a Time Stop set by an unknown enemy. The Time Stop is locked and there is no way for even the technical genius, Foaly, to unlock it from the inside. In the meantime the world is crashing down around them and there is nothing they can do. In order to free themselves they must unlock a key on the other end of the earth that will 'reboot' time all over the world- which would be impossible being unable to step off the premises of Haven. However, there is rumored to be a way to escape a time stop; but there is only one person ever to have accomplished this feat. and he doesn't even know they exist.  
  
-HAVEN- 2 yrs later  
  
Captain Holly Short walked along the chrome hallway, headed to her monthly checkup. She didn't find the chrome very tasteful- it was a Mud Man thing. They thought it helped make things look futuristic. The LEP however, had the most advanced technology available- or rather NOT available as most of it was top secret- on earth, so it wasn't like they needed the layer of shiny metal paint to help them look any better than they already were.  
  
Things had been going well for the past 2 years. Holly hadn't seen Artemis Fowl in that long except when she had been sorting through the LEP's criminal records a year ago. She had happened upon his file and so she had taken it home and burned it- he wouldn't be causing any harm to the People ever again.  
  
The LEP was finally back on track after hiring a new financial advisor so Foaly was finally getting the full support that he needed to invent all of his ingenious gadgets that kept the LEP several steps ahead of every other leading business in the underworld.  
  
Holly had been promoted and given her own squad to command, due to her hard work and excellent demonstration of leadership during the round up of the B'wa Kell.  
  
Almost everything in Holly's life was perfect. The only thing that seemed to be wrong with her was her height. She was abnormally tall, standing a good 8 inches over her fellow 4'8'' squad of fairies. She was second in height only to Commander Julius Root who was a blooming 5'5''. Although their height was an advantage to their position in the LEP, the fact remained: it was unnatural.  
  
At first it was hard to tell- when Artemis had been mind wiped Holly had grown about an inch since she had first met him but it was nothing to make her stand out; a lot of fairies could grow a couple inches taller than was the average height. But after 6 months Holly had sprouted another 2 inches making her even taller than Chix, and sprites were generally taller than fairies. Root had noticed that he had to lower his swivel chair to fit his legs under his desk and that he no longer had to reach quite as far to get to his drawer full of fungus cigars. So it was then that the two confused fairies decided to seek advice from the intellectual centaur of the LEP.  
  
Foaly had detected radio-activity in their blood streams which he judged was triggering growth.  
  
"Foaly? Would you like to tell me how in the name of Frond radio-activity got in my D'arviting blood!?" Root had demanded, rather worried about his health.  
  
"My best guess would be that it happened when you went to the Arctic." Said Foaly while examining the information being fed to him by his computer, "The radioactive environment had to have been so strong that it somehow managed to work its way through my memory latex- which was an ingenious invention if I may say so myself- and from there it somehow entered your body and found its way into the blood stream. Don't have a troll over it though, Julius, it seems as though the particles have bonded on a subatomic level with the genetic makeup of-"  
  
"In Gnommish Foaly!" ordered Root.  
  
Foaly sighed. It was almost as though he couldn't speak and be understood without all his sentences consisting only of monosyllabic words. The only person he'd ever been able to converse with on an equal intellect level was one Artemis Fowl.  
  
"The radiation isn't dangerous, Julius." Foaly adjusted, "The only thing it seems to have affected was your growth. I'm not sure if its permanent or not though, you could grow an inch every month for the rest of your life or you may slow down and stop someday, just as though you were going through a growth spurt."  
  
Foaly had recommended that they come back regularly for a check up, just in case. So every month Holly would go to the command room to see Foaly and get her checkup at 3:00 and Root would come later that day at around 6. The last time she had been there Foaly had detected that her growing had slowed significantly and he predicted that she would likely be finished growing the next time she came. Holly could only hope that he was right.  
  
Captain Short pressed the button on the wall outside of the commands room and the metal door slid open noiselessly. Foaly was tapping away on his keyboard, although the speed at which his fingers flew over the flashing buttons made the tapping more of a constant buzz that hung itself like a thick fog all around the room.  
  
The sound of Holly's boots on the floor told Foaly that someone was there and the buzzing stopped as the Centaur looked up to face the captain.  
  
"Well if it isn't Captain Holly Short coming to pay me a visit." He said with emphasis on Captain, "I'm flattered."  
  
"You should be." She replied, "I hope you have good news for me today."  
  
"Well let's see what I can do."  
  
Foaly walked over to a large screen on the opposite side of the room and brought up a screen with a blank, grid.  
  
"You know the drill," he said, "stand on that pad and relax."  
  
Holly did know the drill; she had gone to these half hour examinations 18 times now over the past 2 years. She walked over to a pad on the floor and breathed deep. Lines started to spread across the screen. This was the part Holly could never comprehend, even though she had been doing this for months. She just didn't understand the different readings, symbols and equations, and, she decided that was okay. Otherwise she might start being able to understand Foaly and that would scare her even more than growing an inch for the rest of her life.  
  
"Hmmm.," Foaly said, "That's interesting." He stared at the screen silently.  
  
"Foaly, don't leave me hanging like that, you know I'm really anxious."  
  
Foaly smiled, happy with himself that he had managed to cause Holly some angst, but he decided to be merciful this time and just tell her what she needed to know.  
  
"Well, Captain, it appears as though there's no more radiation residue in your bloodstream and I can't detect any recent growth patterns. The last one was.," Foaly scanned the readings, "3 weeks ago."  
  
Holly let out a deep sigh of relief, trying to restrain from showing the excitement that was coursing through her. She felt like jumping up and down and screaming and whooping. She even felt a slight inclination to give Foaly a big bear hug but she contained herself.  
  
"You're absolutely sure right? I mean, maybe you should check just in case. I have to know it's for real."  
  
"It's 'for real' Holly. Besides, I thought you hated needles."  
  
"Oh please Foaly," she pleaded, "I need to be assured with something besides a bunch of numbers and symbols- I need something I can understand!"  
  
Foaly sighed, "Fine, I'll run a scan. Sit tight, I need to grab the equipment."  
  
Foaly had taken no more than two steps when the world went dark.  
  
-- A/N: Okay, that's right, I forgot about this big part that I had to write. okay so the NEXT chapter will have Artemis in it. I think. I'm pretty sure. I'm sorry if your one of those people who have to have Artemis in the story to make it interesting (I'm one of those people) but if you can't stand it then how about coming back in a few days. By then I'll have the chapters you like up. And if you like Artemis/Holly stories you are going to love this. 


	3. Realization

A/N: Ok, next chapter up. Here we go:  
  
-COMMANDS ROOM-  
  
The lights flickered on once again to reveal to bewildered fairies.  
  
"What just happened?" Captain Holly Short asked, the worry showing itself clearly on her face through little creases on her forehead.  
  
"A power surge." responded the Centaur absently as he stared into space, obviously trying to come up with some reason for this to possibly have been a good thing.  
  
A power surge: that was not a good sign. Unlike power surges, power failure, blackouts and other such things that are not uncommon on the surface world, they meant bad news for the fairies. Fairies did not HAVE power surges. The lighting and energy that they used to power their society came from plasma, a very efficient and faultless substance. If the power failed it could mean one of 4 things; one: Foaly had turned the power off for repairs. Two: a Mud Man had discovered them. Three: the plasma had accepted something disastrous into its highly reactive state and was about to blow, which would not only turn the entire fairy world into a puddle of black goo, but it would likely take out the solar system as we know it. Or, four: Something had been fired up that used up so much of the LEP's energy that it caused the power briefly go off until the plasma could build up its required state and bring the systems back on track.  
  
Number one was the best case scenario but Holly and Foaly both knew that it hadn't been the centaur that turned the power off so that possibility was out. Number four was a wild card- it would depend on what it was that was using the power and how much power it was using. Seeing as the lights went out for 5 seconds and Foaly's computers had preformed an emergency restart it was not a good sign. Numbers three and two were a tie- Mud Men finding out about their world would be just as disastrous as losing it completely.  
  
"This isn't good, Foaly." Holly said, "We need to form a council meeting right away."  
  
"I'll bet Julius is on his intercom right now, ordering 'all LEP officers get your lazy fairy butts over to the main gate immediately for an emergency meeting. I repeat- all LEP officers move it!'", responded Foaly with all his usual sarcasm even in such a crisis as this.  
  
Holly shrugged absently and began to zone out while trying to sort out what had just happened when she noticed one of Foaly's monitors which had a loading bar going across it signifying that his systems were starting up. Only they weren't starting up- it was frozen and Foaly's computers never froze.  
  
"Foaly?" Holly asked, pointing to the motionless green bar on the monitor.  
  
"Hmmm.?" Foaly, who had begun typing away on his main computer which ran practically everything within Haven, looked over to Holly and then followed her pointing hand.  
  
Foaly's mouth dropped.  
  
"Hello there.," He mumbled as he came over to have a closer look at the screen as though he had to be sure he was seeing it right. "What on earth." He trailed off and his face adapted an expression of bewilderment.  
  
Foaly trotted back to his main computer and began typing once again, opening a bunch of complicated screens, maps and graphs. He got up again and went back to the frozen machine and stared, pale-faced as he tapped a button on the keyboard hopelessly.  
  
Holly was rather scared now. She had never seen bewilderment on Foaly's face and if fear came right after then nothing good could come of it.  
  
"Foaly?" Holly asked warily, "What's going on?"  
  
Foaly swallowed.  
  
"Lets get to that meeting."  
  
A/N: I was gonna keep going and get to the part with Artemis but it is getting late and I still have to do homework. Besides, this is a pretty good cliff hanger doncha think? Oh yah, check out this page: I uploaded some of the pictures I've drawn for this story. I'll make more soon. 


	4. The 1st Assault

Disclaimer: We interrupt your reading with this BREAKING NEWS: I STILL don't own Artemis Fowl!! .. ok that was dumb. But I haven't told you ppl that for a while so why not?  
  
A/N: Hello people. I'm gonna try to be faster at updating this story. Its memorial weekend so that should give me some time. Oooooooo.. This is a toughy. The problem with this chapter is I know little parts that I want to be sure to stick in there but I don't know how I'm gonna lead up to them all. Whatever will I do.? Well I guess that I'll have to make it up as I go. Oh yah, and from now on I'm just gonna reply to certain reviews and questions when I post the next chapter so it will be under the Author's Note (A/N) So if you have a question or something then post it in reviews and I'll answer it (unless your question is something like "how does the story end?" ha! As if I would tell you that! ^_~)  
  
One more thing: go to w w w . g e o c i t i e s . c o m / a r t e m i s f o w l _ i i / T H R . h t m l it's a quick little page I made w/ pictures n stuff for the story.  
  
-LEP HEADQUARTERS; ROOT'S OFFICE-  
  
Commander Julius Root sat at his large cherry wood desk with a stack of papers sitting in front of him. The papers required a signature by the end of the day but Root was in no mood for scrawling his name on a thousand papers at that moment. Instead he just sat there with his head propped up on his hand, puffing on one of his trademark fungus cigars.  
  
"Commander Root, Sir?" said a metallic voice coming from a speaker on his desk.  
  
Julius Root sighed and lazily reached over to press the flashing red button.  
  
"What do you want Grub?" Root asked rather irritably.  
  
"Our squad just arrested a gnome for pick-pocketing an elderly fairy a couple of minutes ago. My boss told me to ask you- do you want us to bring him in to Head Quarters for further questioning or should he be sent to the prison right away, sir?"  
  
"D'arvit, Grub! I am NOT your contact for this kind of information!" Root yelled. Grub pulled the Walky-Talky a couple inches away from his ear.  
  
"Who is your commanding officer?" Root demanded.  
  
"C-Captain J-j-jutes, Commander Root, s-sir."  
  
"Tell him he's fired!!" Root roared and released the button.  
  
The commander placed his face in his hands and massaged his temples.  
  
"I'm getting too old for this job." he muttered. His speaker buzzed again.  
  
"D'ARVIT GRUB! IF THAT'S YOU AGAIN I'LL THROTTLE YOU!"  
  
"It's just me, Sir." Came Trouble Kelp's reply, "My brother being a menace again?"  
  
"Trouble, don't you go taking this the wrong way or anything but if he weren't your brother I'd have kicked him off the team already."  
  
"No offense taken. If it weren't for my Mother I'd have kicked him off myself."  
  
Root grunted in response.  
  
"Sir, I'm calling about your replacement for your 6 o'clock appointment," said Trouble but his voice was accompanied by a heavy amount of static. "We've. he was. convinced.be in-" Trouble's voice was cut off.  
  
"Trouble? KELP! CAN YOU HEAR ME? I REPEAT- CAN YOU HE-" Root fell silent as the lights flickered off. He waited in dead silence until the lights blinked back on once again.  
  
"Sir?" came Trouble's voice from the renewed connection. There were alarms going off in the background now. "I think we've got ourselves a situation here."  
  
"What in the D'arviting name of Frond was THAT?" Root asked rhetorically.  
  
"I believe that was a blackout sir."  
  
"I KNOW WHAT IT WAS!" Root shouted.  
  
"Well its just that you-"  
  
"No time Kelp, I'm calling an emergency meeting."  
  
Trouble's private connection with the commander was cut short only to be replaced with an announcement that could be heard by every LEP officer in Haven.  
  
"I WANT EVERY ONE OF YOU DEAD BEATS AT HEAD QUARTERS NOW! THAT MEANS YOU LEP NUTHEADS!" Came Root's voice. "I REPEAT- MOVE IT!"  
  
LEP all over Haven exchanged worried glances and hit the ignition in their cars, started up their 2005 humming-bird wings or shuffled across the two blocks to HQ as fast as their little feet could carry them.  
  
-LEP HEAD QUARTERS; DEBREIFING ROOM-  
  
Foaly stood at the head of the table with a hundred worried faces staring anxiously at him.  
  
"Get on with it Foaly!" Root ordered.  
  
"Hold your horses Julius, I'm getting to it."  
  
"I'll do more than hold one of my horses if he doesn't get a move on!" countered Root, "I'll d'arviting ring his neck!"  
  
"Now, now, Julius; violence never solved anything." Foaly tutted.  
  
"How many times do I have to tell you never to call me Julius, Foaly?" Root roared. "I AM YOUR SUPERIOR OFFICER!"  
  
"Gentlemen," Holly intervened, "We have a serious crisis at hand! This is no time for bickering!"  
  
Root turned away from Foaly, his face the color of a tomato.  
  
"I've got good news and bad news folks," Foaly began. "The good news is that there is nothing for you to worry about- go on with your lives as you normally would. The bad news is that your common house hold appliances such as organic simulators, communicators and entertainment systems are out of order as well as any transportation out of haven for the next month at the most."  
  
There was a sigh of relief all around the room and people got up and left. Root stared blankly at the centaur.  
  
"That's it?" He asked, bewildered. "That's all there is to it?"  
  
"Stay a moment, would you sir?" Foaly said, "And Holly as well if you please."  
  
Root looked suspiciously at Foaly, "What have you got going on now, Foaly?"  
  
Foaly looked at Root gravely and Root decided to hold off on the questions for a while.  
  
Foaly had both palms placed on the table and was looking at Holly and Root with a look of utter seriousness written in his expression.  
  
"I'm going to make this really plain and simple," He said, "We are in big trouble. I thought it was better not to cause a panic."  
  
"Explain." Root ordered.  
  
Foaly stood up straight and began to pace, recalling the events of earlier that day.  
  
"Okay, here's the deal; The lights go out right? They're off for about 5 seconds and then start up again so the most obvious reason for the blackout is that something was using up a lot of power otherwise they emergency power supply would have kicked in. Holly noticed that the loading bar on my computer that monitors the surface world was frozen- when I tried to reboot it from the computer that controls everything within Haven, it remained frozen. It was then that I guessed that we had been time stopped. My suspicions were confirmed when I realized that everything that had any connection to anywhere outside of Haven was frozen."  
  
"So turn it off!" Root interrupted.  
  
"That's just it- I did TRY to turn it off, but it wasn't OUR systems that turned it ON in the first place!"  
  
"What are you saying?" Root asked.  
  
"What I'm saying is that we're stuck."  
  
"Well there has to be someway to turn it off." Holly said.  
  
"There is." Foaly confirmed, "You have to go to the main Time Stop system- the place that we get the juice to perform time stops- and reboot time. The only problem is that its on the other side of the earth."  
  
"D'arvit!" Root said, "Why is it all the way over there? The LEP is the only business that uses it and we're all concentrated beneath Ireland!"  
  
"Its to prevent anyone from tampering with it while we may be in the middle of an important operation."  
  
Holly shrugged, "makes sense."  
  
Root drummed his fingers on the table and stared off into space. The said "So what you're saying is that they only way for us to get out is to turn this thing off. and the only way to turn it off is to get out."  
  
"Basically," Foaly said, "But there's more- There are Time Stop fields being set up all over the surface world as we speak. A couple of them have been Blue Rinsed already. The places that are being targeted seem to be places with a large concentration of Mud Men- like schools, large business buildings and stores. It's obvious that the person who did this knew that we would try to stop them."  
  
Holly shifted in her seat, feeling a little uncomfortable. She knew what they had to do, and, subconsciously they all did. There was only one person who could save them now.  
  
"Sir." Holly finally said reluctantly.  
  
"What is it, Short?" Root demanded.  
  
"We.," Holly gathered herself and sat up straight, "We have to bring him back, sir."  
  
"What are you going on about now, Short?" Root asked, although he knew all to well what Holly would say.  
  
"Artemis Fowl."  
  
"Don't even think it, Short!" Root said, red in the face, "That boy was a threat to our race! We finally got rid of his nuisance 2 years ago and we are NOT bringing him back."  
  
"Begging your pardon, but I don't think we have much choice, Sir." Holly said.  
  
"I agree with Holly," Foaly said, "In fact I've been planning on it."  
  
"I can't believe I'm hearing this!" Root said, throwing up his hands.  
  
"We have no choice, Julius, Artemis is the only one to ever have escaped a Time Stop. He's the only one who knows how! And right now that's exactly what we need."  
  
"Ok, but supposing we do decide to bring Fowl back- what then?" Root asked, "There's no way out of here!"  
  
"Aha, I'm getting to that." Foaly said, "You see, when we were Time Stopped, there was one magma shoot left open to us- that's how I've been able to gather some information on the outside- with a flare that was ready to go to the surface world. I believe that with a big enough charge I can get it to momentarily unfreeze and shoot to the surface with enough force to carry a pod. But we only have one shot."  
  
Root thought about this for a moment.  
  
"Well if we can get to the surface world, why bother going to Artemis at all? Why not just go to the other side of the earth where you said this Time Stopping thing is and turning it off?" Root asked.  
  
"First of all, Julius, we wouldn't 'turn it off' we would reboot it. And secondly, the sector where this particular machine is located is not accessible from the surface world. You have to travel underground."  
  
Root rubbed his forehead.  
  
"I can't believe I'm saying this," Root said, "but let's go get that boy."  
  
Holly smiled despite herself.  
  
"Short! I want you on that flare in exactly one hour."  
  
"Yessir." Holly said, "I will, sir."  
  
"Foaly, how far is it from the landing site of that shoot to Fowl Manor?"  
  
Foaly trotted over to Root's computer and brought up a screen.  
  
"Appoximately 10 miles."  
  
"I hope you're running hot, Short." Root said turning to Holly, "You're going to need a lot of camouflage."  
  
"Yes, sir." Holly replied, "I think I'll manage just fine."  
  
"No thinking, Short!" Root said, "We have only one shot!"  
  
"Of coarse Sir." Holly corrected herself, "I know I'll manage."  
  
Foaly frowned at the screen monitor.  
  
"I want him back at head quarters for operation: memory return in 3 hours."  
  
"Yessir."  
  
"That may be a problem." came Foaly's voice.  
  
"Really, would you like to tell me about this problem?" Root asked.  
  
"The next time stop is scheduled to open on Fowl Manor in an hour."  
  
-FOWL MANOR-  
  
Juliet Butler hummed a tune as she prepared lunch that Saturday afternoon. It was a beautiful day- the sun was shining, the birds were singing, it was the beginning of summer and all the flowers were in full bloom. So, naturally, Juliet was in a very good mood. She was preparing a large Cesar salad, twenty perfectly cut triangular sandwiches- no crust, lemonade made with lemons from the Fowl garden, two cherry pies, croissants with fresh butter, and of coarse, caviar for young Master Fowl. She planned to have a picnic of sorts in the courtyard.  
  
Domovoi Butler hefted the 500lbs weight above his head as though it were merely a kitchen chair. He had regained his city bus physic in the past 2 years and could now run up to a mile without loosing his breath if he paced himself correctly but it was still a far cry from his former state of health. Still, he felt as young as ever but he could take no chances any longer. He knew how it felt to loose everything over night.  
  
Deep blue eyes scanned through the pages of a small notebook containing thousands of formulas, conversions, and notes on medicines and plants. Artemis Fowl sat with one leg crossed over the other on an elaborate garden bench. It was definitely safe to say that he had changed a lot in the past two years. In the beginning he had gone against his parents wishes and done business in the black market several times, but for some reason criminal acts just didn't seem to give him the same satisfaction that it once had. Instead he found that he was attracted to the fantastical and the outdoors. He had also become obsessed with psychology for a few months, certain that he had forgotten something utterly important and determined to unlock hidden memories. However, his efforts were fruitless and eventually he moved on to study botany as plants seemed to be his other calling. After absorbing every bit of information about plants available to him and earning himself an online PHD in botany, he moved on to medicine.  
  
Now, almost a year later he had invented the cure to the common cold, one form of cancer and was on his way to solving the world's disease of the immune system- AIDS by combining his studies. Of coarse he sold his knowledge and medicines but he did it legally and refused several former associates in the black market the information that they had begged him for. He had increased the Fowl account by several millions thus far, bringing in 20% more in the past 10 months than his father had within the entire year. Artemis' fixation was not only beneficial to the Fowl enterprise though. Due to the extensive time he had to spend outside and physical activity he was exposed to with his new preoccupation he had gained some muscle mass and darkened considerably- but not too drastically. True his body was more toned but he remained lanky and it is no lie that his skin was not such a dead white as before albeit not a mocha brown. Rather it was of a golden hue with the glow of life restored to it.  
  
"Arty! Lunchtime!" came Juliet's jaunty voice from the kitchen.  
  
Artemis smiled inwardly. His parents were on a trip to the United States and Juliet had a habit of feeling like she needed to take care of him- even though he was 16 now. He stood up, straightened his black pants and polo shirt and headed off to the kitchen.  
  
"Good afternoon master Fowl," Juliet said teasingly. She pointed at his head, "You have dirt in your hair." She reached up and brushed it out.  
  
Artemis scowled and put his hair back in order. He may have had dirt in his hair since he had been working in the garden for most of the day but he doubted there had been anything in his hair in actuality.  
  
Juliet grinned; badgering Artemis was one of her favorite things to do.  
  
Butler walked into the kitchen then, "What smells so good?"  
  
Juliet raised her eyebrows innocently, "Its probably Artemis, he's been playing in the flowers all day."  
  
Butler chuckled.  
  
"Very funny," Artemis remarked. "But I would hardly consider it to be 'playing' as you call it." Then, feeling a bit self-conscious he held his sleeve up to his nose and inhaled.  
  
"I don't really smell like flowers, do I?"  
  
Juliet laughed enthusiastically, "Don't worry Arty, no flower on Earth could save you."  
  
Artemis rolled his eyes.  
  
"I thought we would have a picnic in the courtyard," Juliet announced, changing the subject, "how does that sound, gentlemen?"  
  
"It sounds different," said Artemis in reply, "but seeing as you have worked so hard in preparing lunch I don't see why we can't."  
  
-FOWL MANOR; COURTYARD-  
  
After finishing their lunch Butler was assisting in clean up, Juliet was wrapping up uneaten food and enjoying the scenery. Artemis was jotting down notes in his plant book.  
  
"What are you working on, Arty?" Juliet inquired.  
  
"I'm plotting world domination." Artemis remarked sarcastically.  
  
"You know Mrs. Fowl doesn't like you to do that." Juliet retorted.  
  
"She'll never know."  
  
"What's your favorite flower, Arty? I do like those bright pink ones."  
  
Artemis looked up and raised an eyebrow, "The Dahlias?"  
  
"Oh I don't know, Artemis. I'm not the one hunched over plant books day in and day out."  
  
Artemis shrugged, "I merely assumed you were talking about the Dahlias since they are the brightest pink in hue of all the flowers I have planted. They're also growing in many places around the Manor as they can grow in many different conditions. One of the places they grow is right outside the kitchen window which would make the odds even higher that you would notice it."  
  
Juliet grinned and nodded, "You're right, they are the ones outside the kitchen window."  
  
"When have I ever been wrong?"  
  
Juliet threw a piece of sandwich at him.  
  
Artemis winced and rubbed at his eye, "Juliet, must you be so immature?" he asked rather chafed. "Now I have mustard or something in my eye."  
  
"Oh you poor thing," Juliet remarked, "Just go wash it out in the bathroom!"  
  
Begrudgingly he got up and stalked off to the bathroom.  
  
Artemis flushed his eye out with water and examined it in the mirror. There didn't seem to be anything in it anymore but it remained irritated. Some crumbs must have got under his eyelid. He continued to splash water in his eye. Looking up again he noticed that his reflection had begun to shake. He frowned; perplexed, but then he began to feel the ground quivering beneath his feet- an earthquake.  
  
Artemis ran into the hall and through the manor towards the front door, he saw Juliet and Butler already out side the threshold, obviously they had come to make sure he was going to get out okay. By this time it was an arduous task just to keep himself on his feet. He was only three feet from the door when the carpet slipped from under his feet sending him tumbling out the door and halfway down the front steps.  
  
His head spinning and disoriented he tried to pick himself up but he found that moving caused him pain. He thought he saw Juliet and Butler being knocked off their feet and landing on the ground, unconscious. A loud cracking sound turned his attention to one of the gargantuan gargoyle statues that adorned the Manor's entrance way. The fictional monster fell from its cement perch and landed on top of Artemis' chest, pinning him to the spot.  
  
Having the wind knocked out of him with no way to suck any back in Artemis' world began to fade into blackness. The only things he knew was the razor sharp pain in his chest and the falling sky.  
  
Can you believe that I wasn't even going to make this one chapter? I was going to make you wait ANOTHER chapter to hear about Artemis! HA! But I decided to be nice to you and merge the two chapters so now you get a long chapter AND Artemis. YAY! If you have any questions or anything you can ask me them now in a review and I will answer them in the next chapter. Has anyone ever heard the song, "Remember Me This Way?" Part of it is on that Casper movie. It's the one that plays at the Halloween ball. Well I thought it would be cool for a song fic but I can't use it if nobody knows what it is so. yah. 


	5. Recon

A/N: Hi again pplz! This Chapter might be a little short because I want to get it up for you guys! So I'll probably write like half of what would be a full chapter, put it up and then keep working on the rest of it. How does that sound?  
  
Here are some comments I got:  
  
Shadowweaver: "wow! This is as good as reading the books. I am jelous, you've got Colfer's style of writing perfect and have even improved some aspects of it. Great chappie, update soon."  
  
Thank you so much :) That means a lot to me:)  
  
Angel: "Wow!! This is an amazing story! I was highly doubtful when I read the summary but it doesn't even do your story credit! Wonderful! Very good spelling, I only caught one error. Course was spelled Coarse in your story. Course=(Of course) Coarse=(rough, vulgar). And of course I remember that song on Casper! I love that song!"  
  
Thanks for telling me :) I changed the summary. I know I'm terrible w/ that spelling. it actually all started when I was typing the line "Even the smallest person can change the course of the future." And then my friend was like "No! It doesn't go like that!" and ever since I've spelled it wrong all the time. its like jinx! I love that song too ^-^  
  
Animezebra: "Oh wow...u have to update soon. I need to know what happens! And btw, "Remember Me This Way" is one of the prettiest songs ever...use it if you can! That would be so sweet!"  
  
Yah, I love that song. I'm singing it in an up coming talent show. I will try to make a fic for it soon then :)  
  
Cutykitt: "Hey i joined fan fiction because of you your agreat writer please keep going, i am serious i need to now what happens next. I cant wait to read more of your stuff by the way do you mind if i print the story read again off-line?"  
  
First of all I'm very flattered. Secondly, go right ahead! I'm happy somebody likes my story so much!  
  
Cutykitt: "I agree with tine foaly isnt quite right hes the hardest personality to get but i was surprised by the wat you portrayed Artemis, just like the book the one thing was wouldn't he be 15 not sixteen it said he was thirteen in etrinity cube right? i am just not sure. well other than that i wanted to praise your work one last time and say (I love that song, amd that movie). Well write on you have me caught i going to check every day to see if you've written more."  
  
Hi again^-^ Yah, Foaly is hard. I'll just try to be as sarcastic as possible^-^ lol, no I have to go back and read some Foaly parts in Artemis Fowl I, II and III. As for the age; I wanted him to be 16 in this story so I decided that the Arctic incident had been in the middle of the year and the Eternity Code had been at the end so about a month after Artemis was brain wiped he would have his 14th birthday. That's why at the beginning I made Holly think 'two years ago- or almost three now' because I wanted him to be closer to 14. so approximately 2 years later is when this story starts when Artemis has just recently turned 16. Why didn't I just make it 3 years later you ask? Aha! It has something to do with a dwarf and a reunion. Good question BTW :)  
  
Now For the story:  
  
(I rewrote it a bit)  
  
Trees whizzed by below her taut flying position. Holly Short was heading North towards the colossal Fowl Manor, currently 7 miles from her destination. She had 25 minutes to get there and retrieve Artemis Fowl before he -and feasibly her as well- would be stuck in yet another Time Stop. Only this time it would not be simply a means to render them incapable of any resistance or attack- they would be Blue Rinsed off the face of the earth.  
  
Her ride to the surface had been a nightmare. To say it was a 'bumpy-ride' would be the understatement of the year, but Foaly had managed to get her above ground in one piece. The landing was another story. Since the pod had no power there was no way for Holly to control it. Basically all she could do was sit back and hope the pod landed on something soft- it didn't. She wasn't exactly looking forward to going back down the shoot either- no power meant no return flight- she would have to survive with her heat repellant LEP uniform and a set of Humming Bird Wings.  
  
Holly approached the Manor with only 8 minutes to spare. She performed a basic landing tactic by doing a backwards flip towards the ground so her feet landed as soon a she was right side up once more. She had no x-ray vision contacts, no heat sensitive lens in her helmet and no genius centaur that was three steps ahead of the operation and ready to walk her through it. She would have to find Artemis the hard way.  
  
She set her wings to hover and glided down the expansive driveway. She traveled quickly enough not to waste time but not too fast that she would miss something. Decorative trees lined the driveway making it hard to see beyond them. 7 minutes remained on the clock.  
  
The trees were becoming much too dense to see anything past where they grew so she expertly punched a few buttons on the strap that held the elaborate wings to her body and rose to about 7 feet above the cement. It was then, with only 6 minutes to spare, that Holly spotted her target. A tall boy, seemingly in a hurry, entered the Manor about the length of a foot ball field from where she was now. Captain Short sped up and landed where the trees ended- about 20 yards from the entrance way. When her feet touched ground she immediately noticed the tremors that ran through the earth- a sign of a poorly devised and inaccurate Time Stop; this could be dangerous. Holly checked her watch; she should still have at least 5 minutes before anything even started to happen.  
  
The ground was jumping about so much at this point that Holly had to constantly shift her weight around in order to remain standing. About to run for it, she saw two familiar Mud Men round the corner of the Manor and she halted. Just then Artemis came rolling down the front steps and landed in a rather uncomfortable-looking position. She began to run to him but she lost her footing on the quaking earth beneath her and crashed to the ground. Two things happened then- first there was a loud 'CRACK!' that sounded like troll had split its head open. It was coming from a large marble gargoyle right above where Artemis was laying limply. Second; the two Mud Men were staring right at her. She looked down at her hands. She was visible! The tremors in the earth were apparently canceling out the vibration of her body which enabled her to become invisible to the human eye. This was going to cause problems- if their seeing her hadn't brought back a few very reticent memories, it would certainly give them something to talk about!  
  
She hated to do it but it was necessary- she set her Neutrino to stun and shot a masterfully aimed laser beam at them both; knocking them off their feet and out of consciousness. At the same moment the gargoyle fell from his crumbling base and landed on top of Artemis.  
  
"Great," She thought, "Just what I need."  
  
She looked at her watch which told her she had 3 minutes, but the earth was moving so much now that she doubted she had even a whole minute left to her. She cleared the 20 yards as fast as she could and tried to lift the rock that pinned Artemis to his front steps. No luck. She could hear the gurgling sound of a Time Stop wall in the distance. She'd always thought of the noise as calming- much like the noise a stream makes, but now it only managed to cause her further distress. She hastily pulled out a long cable from her waist- a moon belt. Expertly, she tied it to the statue and started up her wings. She flew into the air, lifting the statue from Artemis's chest, flew over to the left and cut the cord- the cement pulverized the marble figure. The roar of the approaching Time wall was almost deafening now. She zipped back down and lifted the unconscious Artemis as though she were holding an infant.  
  
Holly expeditiously fastened a strap- that normally crossed her chest to secure her wings- around Artemis' shoulders and pushed her humming-bird controls into full throttle, launching herself into the air. She had taken off none to soon for just as she was leaving the ground she saw the familiar shimmering wall of a time stop closing in around them. She straightened out her body and flew vertically towards the closing dome that now surrounded the Manor. If she wasn't carrying Artemis she could have made it out easily but the extra weight slowed her down considerably. She gripped the emergency boost handles on her wings, straining the motor and sleek wire frame. Her eyes were squinted and her jaw was set in determination. At the last moment she cleared the opening with only inches to spare and rocketed through the evening sky.  
  
A/N: Better? Better. Ok. I'm writing the next chapter now. 


	6. Reminiscing

A/N: I was reading through chapter 5 yesterday and noticed that it had a lot of spelling and grammar errors, was poorly written and wasn't very exciting at all. This is probably because I wrote it a 11:30. (mental note to self: never do that again.) So I revised. Go check it out if you haven't already okee dokee? OK.  
  
A lot of people are asking how I could have left poor Juliet and Butler behind to be Blue Rinsed. Well you see. ha! I tricked you. I'm not telling. It's because I'm evil and I feel like causing poor Artemis a lot of angst and sadness. so there. MWAHAHAHA! Ok, Anyway; on with the story already.  
  
-IRELAND; above Fowl Manor-  
  
Holly exhaled slowly. Her whole body was shaking. She had barely made it- what would have happened if she had been caught only half way through? She shuddered to think.  
  
Captain Short looked down at the limp body in her arms. He looked so peaceful.  
  
"How can you just lay there like nothing happened? Do you have any idea what I just did for your smart ass?" Holly yelled at the unconscious form. She didn't know whether it was because she was truly mad at him or if she was so happy to be alive she needed to hear her own voice. Or even maybe, it was because she was so happy to see Artemis she just didn't know how to deal with herself- perhaps a little of everything.  
  
Holly looked at him and frowned- something was wrong. She stared for a moment and then it hit her- he wasn't breathing! All contempt vanished as she tucked her body into a roll and plunged towards the ground. The Captain pulled up only seconds before driving herself and the lifeless body in her arms into the dirt. She laid Artemis on the ground and pulled up his shirt, placing her hand on his chest.  
  
"Heal!" She said, a little more strongly than she had meant to.  
  
Artemis writhed and clawed at the ground as blue sparks danced across his chest like uncouth electricity. Holly felt his chest raise beneath her hand as his ribs knitted together. He gasped and his eyes snapped wide open, rolled back into his head and closed once more. Finally the sparks subsided and Artemis rolled over onto his side and curled up into a ball.  
  
Holly reached over and tapped the cringing form on the shoulder warily. Artemis twitched and rolled over shakily. He rocked back and forth a bit and looked at her through hazy eyes. Artemis blinked a few times and then he shut his eyes momentarily. When he opened them again Holly saw that they now had a new depth to them.  
  
Artemis inhaled sharply as though he were in pain, which- she could imagine- he probably was.  
  
"Holly. . ." he whispered and his eyes fell shut.  
  
-HAVEN; BOTTOM OF MAGMA FLARE SHOOT-  
  
Holly removed her helmet and wiped the sweat from her forehead. From now on she would appreciate being able to ride in an LEP magma flare pod- they may be ancient, beat up pieces of junk but at least they were insulated; flying back with only her heat repellant suit had been like flying through hell itself.  
  
Holly set Artemis down on the floor and commenced to free him from the cocoon of heat repellant foil she had wrapped him in. His shirt was soaked with sweat and his face was hot with beads of perspiration gathered on his forehead and above his top lip.  
  
"Well it could be worse," She said to nobody in particular.  
  
After she had packed all the foil back into her bag she grabbed Artemis under the arms and dragged him out of the flare room.  
  
In the cool lobby she propped Artemis up on a bench and sat down next to him to wait for Foaly and Root to arrive and help her bring Fowl back to HQ.  
  
Holly awoke to find herself being cradled in somebody's arms. She looked up to find Foaly was carrying her.  
  
"Good morning sleepy head," Foaly said with a smirk, "need a lift?"  
  
Holly felt the blood rush to her face. She kicked and squirmed.  
  
"Let me down!" She yelled.  
  
Foaly dropped her and she fell to the floor landing on her bum. Foaly snorted -certainly a sound you'd never forget.  
  
"Short! Foaly! You can play your little games with each other when we get back to Head Quarters!"  
  
"You heard the man, Holly. Get into the truck." Then he smiled cheekily and said, "Unless you'd like to get in the back with your sweet heart."  
  
"Shut up!" She yelled irritably and climbed into the passenger's seat.  
  
-LEP HEAD QUARTERS-  
  
When Artemis opened his eyes he found himself in a small room with pipes climbing rust colored walls, machines blipping in every corner and a funny looking little man with a purple face sitting behind a desk right in front of him.  
  
His first instinct was to reach for his cell phone and call Butler, but when he attempted to move his hand to the inside pocket of his jacket he discovered that both his arms were tied behind his back. He looked around to find himself situated in the middle of a small room, tied to a chair.  
  
"Welcome to LEP airlines," came a voice from an unseen body, "I will be your captain today as we take a little trip down memory lane. So buckle your seat belts and please remain seated throughout our flight."  
  
"This is no plane." Artemis thought, but then he realized he must have said it out loud because the disembodied voice replied.  
  
"Well aren't we smart," it said, "but I would suggest you try not to think too much throughout our journey for your own benefit. Just be a good little boy and do everything the nice funny-looking little man tells you."  
  
"Foaly! Get on with it or you won't be seeing anything yellow and shiny all year!" said the man behind the desk.  
  
"Foaly?" Artemis thought, "That's familiar too..."  
  
"You remember me," said the voice sarcastically, "I'm touched, really."  
  
"Do I keep saying everything out loud?" Artemis asked himself, surprised.  
  
"No, your brain is being monitored by that machine in the left hand corner and I'm reading everything you think in little green symbols that run across my screen." It was a strange statement but Artemis couldn't detect any sarcasm this time.  
  
"Ready, Mud Man?" said the strange little man.  
  
Artemis frowned. Whoever this new adversary was, they had definitely underestimated him to think that he would give in quite so easily.  
  
"Okay, now we're going to play a little game, its called a-sso-ci-a-tion." Said the voice that was apparently named Foaly; sounding the word out as though he was talking to an idiot. Artemis scowled. "This is how you play: I'm going to say a word, you're going to say the first thing that comes to mind and the short guy is going to write down whatever you said. And I mean the FIRST thing that comes to mind. No thinking allowed in this game. Ready?"  
  
The strange man twisted a pen open and pulled out a sheet of paper.  
  
"No, I am not." Artemis stated, "I don't know who you think you are, but you indubitably don't know who you're dealing with. You do realize that I am the accomplished Artemis Fowl, do you not? A prodigy. I've never been caught and I never loose. But even without said attributes, my bodyguard can tear you all limb from limb at any given moment."  
  
Foaly couldn't hold back a laugh. Such confidence coming from a drowsy adolescence tied to a chair in the middle of a room with LEP officers lining the perimeter of the building was too much for him.  
  
"Oh don't worry. We know more about you than you do, Fowl." Foaly said, "And your bodyguard is down for the count. Now just be a good little boy and do whatever the nice man tells you."  
  
"I should hardly think so." Artemis replied stubbornly.  
  
Root stood and walked over to Artemis.  
  
"Now look here!" he roared. Artemis looked at him icily.  
  
"Too easy." Thought Root. Now that he had eye contact he impregnated his voice with tones of deep alto and bass of the Mesmer.  
  
"Now," he said, "Listen to the voice and say the first thing that comes to mind."  
  
"Troll"  
  
"...Bridge." Artemis said dreamily.  
  
Root jotted something down on the piece of paper.  
  
"Ransom"  
  
"Rescue..."  
  
"Gold"  
  
"Money..."  
  
"Fire"  
  
"Burn..."  
  
"Congratulations," Foaly said in mock enthusiasm, "You've made it to level two. We're going to get a little more specific"  
  
"Batteries"  
  
"Goblin... " his mind whispered but he could barely hear it. "... power."  
  
"Oooh.... you could loose points for that, Mud Boy." Said Foaly, "Ok, next word: Goblin."  
  
"Ugly..."  
  
"Not exactly what I was looking for but I'll give that one to you. Ok; leprechaun."  
  
"gold..." He said.  
  
"Your priorities haven't changed have they? Fairy."  
  
"Mesmer..."  
  
"Now we're getting somewhere. One more try and then we'll move up another level: Time Stop."  
  
"Blue Rinse..."  
  
"Good job. Okay, once again, getting a little more specific. Lets try B'wa Kell."  
  
Artemis blinked as memories came flooding back.  
  
"Goblins." He said.  
  
"LEP Recon."  
  
"Haven."  
  
"Commander Root."  
  
"...Fungus Cigars..."  
  
"Dwarf."  
  
"Mulch."  
  
"Okay. Now we're going to play another game," Foaly said. "All you have to do is look at that little man and pay careful attention to what he says."  
  
Commander Root stood looked sternly into the blue depths of Artemis' eyes.  
  
"Sleep." Root said ladling his voice with more mesmer.  
  
Artemis' head hung.  
  
-LEP HEAD QUARTERS; COMMANDS ROOM-  
  
Foaly watched as Artemis' thoughts slowed across the screen meaning he was in a deep sleep. Restoring memories was simple enough when working with a Goblin because they were very weak minded and, well, stupid. but reintroducing or triggering memories in somebody as cynical and strong headed as Artemis Fowl was a lot harder and would take more precision.  
  
Foaly placed his cursor at the end of a thought stream and began inserting triggers, or sentences and words that would unearth hidden memories by association. It was much easier to do this when the person was sleeping because the brain does not interpret thoughts or criticize ideas as quickly in the subconscious.  
  
Foaly went to Root's notes as a means to determine key words or phrases that would bring back memories. The test they had just run had revealed a couple of things to them, first of all it told them what memories would take more work to bring back and which were fairly close by. It also told them what words triggered what thoughts- this was vital information because it was what Foaly needed to know in order to perform the next step.  
  
After an hour interpreting thoughts and connecting ideas Foaly was finally finished. All time for corrections was gone. If this worked they would be saved. If it didn't... well I guess they would find out.  
  
A/N: Whoohoo! I fixed it. I'm feeling much better now. Thank you for all of your concern:) Yah, I just read it today and I was like "Dude! As if Artemis Fowl would just wake up in the middle of a strange room and see a bunch of weirdoes who he doesn't know and just go with the flow... NO WAY!" So yah, I fixed it. Now Artemis is back to his egotistical self... mwahaha. 


	7. Author's Note

A/N: Whoa! Hey people, where's the love? I went to check my e-mail when I came home from school today and there was a lot of negative feedback from Chapter 5 and 6. Did I screw up that badly? Well anyway, here's a couple I wanted to reply to:  
  
The Masked Avenger: "ARTEMIS? AND PLANTS? You are doing anything BUT keeping him in character. This better get more believable."  
  
Ok, to this comment I say sorry if you find my writing corny/cheesey/fake/non-believable or whatever. As for the plants thing- first of all BOTANY (and Medicine) are two very significant fields of science. Second of all, in the end of the third book Artemis says that instead of liking the Impressionists he was drawn to more fantastical subject matter. So I was widening this idea by saying over the course of 2 years he had become drawn to other things that were related to the fairies. My reasons for this will be revealed later. Also, the characterization might be hard to pick out for Artemis in the beginning and for quite a while because first he has changed over the coarse of two years and then he is going to change into an even more mature 16 year old who has the same subconscious and desires as other 16 year olds. you get where I'm going right? K.  
  
The Masked Avenger: "You need to check something. If Holly is 8 inches taller than her 4'8" colleagues, that means that she is 5'6". That would mean that she is TALLER than a 5'5" Root. There. That's your math lesson for the day."  
  
Is that so? Let's count. 4'8'' + 1= 4'9'' +1=4'10'' +1=4'11'' +1=5'0'' +1=5'1'' +1=5'2'' +1=5'3'' +1=5'4''. Wanna count how many times I added 1? Let's see. I got eight. So... I would surmise that 4'8'' plus 8'' comes out to 5'4''. Touché  
  
On a side note: The latter of the two reviews I chose to reply to was stated rather rudely and with a very cocky nature- two things which really aggravate me. Also, the statement was incorrect after they put so much time and energy into being so peremptory- which I'm sure, will really aggravate them. So in the future if anybody finds an error in my story that they think should be brought to my attention I would love to hear it! But be sure to take these first steps: think of a nice way to say it and make sure you know what you're talking about.  
  
There was another review that I wanted to reply to except that this one I found to be very flattering. I wanted to e-mail you, LMTran, but your e- mail address was unavailable so I guess we'll have to settle for second best.  
  
LMTran: "Ah, now don't you feel special? I've been searching for a worthy Artemis Fowl Fanfic, and your Story has been offically deemed more-than acceptable. Time for my compliments and my *ahem*, "Wise" words of advice.  
  
Your writing style is great, and the way you incorporated several components that were mentioned in the Artemis Fowl books was stunning. You used the Time-stopping idea and still managed to keep all the details making sense and cooperate with the Time-stop situation. Good job! Does the hieght of Commander Root and Holly have anything to do with the plot later on, or is it just for fun? I like fun...But if it's part of the plot, that's good too.  
  
I also must say, that your plot idea was ingenius, and I must applaude your intellect. I mean, I would have never thought of that (but considering my intelligence level...)!  
  
Now, concerning Artemis's behavior. I would have thought he would be more...illegal. I mean, there's nothing wrong with the Artemis you have now, but It would certainly be more likely for him to be more criminal-like since the nature he had gained by associating with the fairies was erased. The diary entry in the end of "The Eternity Code" was a huge clue that he would pursue his black acts and try to find out about fairies sooner or later (Deja Vu for him...). Well, it's really kind of late for you to change that now, but I'm just saying for future reference. Good job, though! =DrnrnThis also concerns Artimis's behavior-there could have been a way for him to go his way as a law abiding person, but you've forgotton about the Mulch Diggums element (or maybe you didn't and you have plans for him later, I dunno). It couldn't have possibly taken Mulch 2 years to get out of his law problems, after all, Artimis fixed everything up for him-or maybe it does, I really don't know...But it just seemed appropiate to mention at a time like this. If you don't have plans for him in the story, you might want to put him in for a little twist.  
  
Well, yur fanfic is great so far, and I hope you continue it soon! I'm hoping to read it more in the future, as long as you keep up a consistent pace!  
  
-Lizzie-"  
  
First of all I would like to say thank you for all of the compliments :) They're very encouraging. Now I will answer questions and comment on certain things:  
  
Yes, the height does have something to do with plot development... Not so much for Root as far as I know but Holly's height does fit into the story.  
  
Yes, about the whole legal/illegal matter: I know that Artemis had said that he would be secretly practicing criminal activities at the end of the 3rd book -which I think I did actually end up saying he had done in the beginning- but I dragged him away from that path for 2 reasons; I needed him to show more characteristics of actually having been influenced by the fairies and it is crucial to plot development that he not be a criminal... otherwise it would be too dramatic of a change and therefore unbelievable... But that is a good point. I've been meaning to explain that so thanks for the opportunity :)  
  
Yes, I do have plans for Mulch in the future ^-^ No, it certainly wouldn't have taken Mulch two years to get out of trouble... although it may have been hard for him to STAY out of trouble for that long. Remember in the end of the book when Artemis gives Mulch that note that told him to tell his lawyer to check the date for the first search warrant of his cave? Then he advised Mulch to "keep his nose clean" for a couple of years after he was released. He was then instructed to bring the medallion back to Artemis. This is why the story is set 2 years in the future. That was a very good question as well.  
  
-- Okay, thank you to all of my reviewers :) As a final word I just wanted to inform you that the next chapter will likely take a few days to get up as I am not feeling too well lately and my state of health seems to be affecting my writing ability in the sense that I don't make very clever connections in my chapters. I've noticed this when re-reading the most recent chapters and I will fix them eventually. Also I'm finding myself in very irritable moods so the wave of negative comments isn't going over too well at the moment...  
  
Well I luv you guyz and I will try to have the next chapter up ASAP.  
  
P.S. I added some more pictures to that story site if you wanna check it out: w w w . g e o c i t i e s . c o m / a r t e m i s f o w l _ i i / T H R . h t m l 


	8. Awakening

A/N: Hi again! Sheesh! It is HOT today!!! Well... hot for Washington weather... Anyway! I'm feeling better now:) Thank heavens...  
  
Ok, answers to stuff...  
  
Litobookworm: "i love your stories! I keep looking for something to read until the next artemis fowl comes out (you wouldn't happen to know when, would you? ^_^), preferably something that talks about what happens after the eternity code. Your stories are perfect! Keep on writing!"  
  
I think I got that question a couple of times... Well I'll reply to this one. Anyway, I've heard that Artemis Fowl 4 comes out next year ::shrugs:: I also heard it was going to be called The Opal Deception. Ya know, Eoin was going to only write 3 stories but I guess he changed his mind (thank god...) I've also heard that the Artemis Fowl movie comes out next year too... Well maybe you guys could tell me if you've heard anything about that. And you know what I'd really like to know? WHO'S PLAYING ARTEMIS FOWL??? Everyone keeps asking who's playing Holly... but nothing is being said about Artemis. Why not? Artemis is more of a main character so why no info? Stupidness...  
  
HellFenix: this was an interesting chapter. i like reading review responses! question: how did you get the idea for this story because it's quite original. okay, very original actually... looking foward to your next update!!  
  
Ok, first of all, whenever I get totally into something (or obsessed as my friends say... meh.) I always make up these little fantasies in my head with a plot and kinda tell a story to myself in my free time... So whenever I'm really bored and have nothing to do I start where I left off and keep making it up as I go along. Well this actual story all started at 1:00 in the morning when I was laying on the couch watching my Dad play Quantum Redshift on the Xbox. And then I thought of this little scene where Root is briefing the LEP and Artemis who had come to help them with something on the upcoming mission but he had run late into the night and Artemis falls asleep on a bench at the back of the room. (yes... this part IS coming up...) and then I thought "hmm.. that would be cool if the LEP needed Artemis' help with something... especially since they just mind wiped him. What a bummer that would be." And anyway, I decided to start a story about that. So I had to think of a reason why the LEP needed his help. My first idea was that bombs were being dropped around but that would be stupid because as if they would actually need help dealing with that. So then I was thinking if they were trapped and they needed to get out then that would work. So, duh, Time Stop! Only Artemis knows how to get out of those! And then I went to Blue Rinse instead of bombs but I still wanted Artemis to get beat up a bit cuz its kinda heart wrenching (although I didn't make it as big of a deal as I had intended... this is because its too early in the story and I plan on hurting him later. Mwahahaha... So I can't get you too used to the Angst.) so I threw in the whole earthquake thing. But yah... I wasn't actually gonna put this story up but I was looking around for some good Artemis Fowl fanfiction when I noticed that that stories of that classification are in a painfully low supply... and where good ideas stood, writing skills were lacking. So I decided to try my hand at it. And I know that I am not THE best writer or anything but I have a pretty good imagination so where skill lacks I have creativity to make up for it. Or so I hope. Glad you like my idea though^-^  
  
Ok, now just for a few quick answers:  
  
Benten: I don't see any errors in your English at all! Also that is awesome that you are learning a second language. I would like to learn Japanese. Right now I speak French and English.  
  
Night: I think that night sounds like a girl's name anyway... but maybe that's just me.  
  
Ok, now, people keep telling me to bring Mulch back. Well I am! No worries!  
  
No, I don't really know what D'Arvit actually means... I had imagined that Eoin Colfer had made it up to sound similar to the English saying 'Darn It' but if you know otherwise I would be interested in knowing!  
  
About Artemis and the flower thing: people seem to be really surprised about this. I was going for elaborating on the idea that he had been affected by the fairies... but if you REALLY want me to I can make him a criminal again... or kinda both or something... I can make him develop poisons or something... How bout you vote in your review?  
  
Well Anyway, I have a feeling I might have scared some people by those replies to the Masked Avenger's reviews... Because it seems like a few of you are spending a little extra time in your reviews to sound nice and unthreatening^-^ lol. Don't worry- I don't enjoy insulting, criticizing, begrudging, or embarrassing people so I won't do it to you unless you send me 3 smart-aleck reviews (like the Masked Avenger did... although I only posted 2) telling me I suck or I don't know what I'm doing etc. I don't mind constructive criticism, I don't even mind if you tell me you think my story isn't very good so long as you have a reason and don't go making an idiot of yourself in the process- in which case I just wouldn't be able to contain myself and would have no choice but to point out your error seeing as you were so intent on pointing out mine. But I just thought I'd tell you that so you won't all think I'm evil or anything.  
  
Anyway:  
  
-HAVEN; SURFACE SIMULATOR-  
  
The onlooker watched as the 16 year old who lay sprawled upon artificial grass stirred in his sleep.  
  
Artemis breathed in deeply and brought his arm up to rest upon his brow. A nagging suspicion of being watched forced him to open his eyes. White hot light glared down on him and he instinctively closed his eyes once more. A shadow passed before him and he cracked an eye open to find a figure standing over him. Opening both eyes he could make out the form of a girl looking about 6 years older than him self.  
  
Artemis cocked his head to the side as if waiting for the girl to speak.  
  
"Foaly told me to stick you in here so you could adjust to the pressure," said the girl. She spoke with an accent that seemed to have been comprised of a little of everything. "Otherwise you'd end up hyperventilating due to lack of air. He also said I should warn you of some minor head aches you might experience in the near future." She said all of this rather passively with an expression of I'd-rather-be-anywhere-else-in-the-world-right-now- instead-of-being-stuck-with-you written in her features.  
  
Artemis' brow furrowed in confusion.  
  
"I'm sorry... but I don't..." He said but he didn't know how to finish his sentence without admitting that he didn't understand what was going on. He had never not been able to understand something.  
  
The girl rolled her eyes and sighed.  
  
"Foaly is the smartest, nicest and most talented creature on earth." She said as though she were reading something.  
  
Artemis blinked, wondering what she was talking about, when suddenly the world around him seemed to change as if it was emerging from a fog that had been too thick for him to see through. Everything became clear and began to make sense; it was like waking up from a long slumber.  
  
Artemis sat bolt upright then winced as a sharp pain shot through his head. He moaned and cradled his head in his hands.  
  
"Oh don't be such a baby, Fowl." The girl taunted, "It's just a little headache. Honestly, I thought you might have grown up a little in the last 2 years."  
  
"Nice to see you too, Holly." Artemis said through his hands.  
  
-LEP HEADQUARTERS; DEBREIFING ROOM-  
  
Commander Root puffed on one of his fungus cigars at the head of a long table. Foaly sat in his swivel chair nearby, typing on a portable computer.  
  
"How long did you say this would take?" Root asked for the third time in the last half hour.  
  
Foaly sighed and closed the lid on his computer.  
  
"Three hours, Julius." The centaur replied coolly, "It will only take one hour for his body to adjust to the pressure level in Haven, another hour for his mind to process the newly implanted memory triggers and about an hour for Holly to spend some quote-on-quote quality time with him and bring him back here."  
  
Root grunted.  
  
"What about plan B?" Root asked.  
  
"There is no plan B." Foaly replied.  
  
"What do you mean 'no plan B'?" Root said, "There's always plan B! What will we do if this doesn't work?"  
  
"It'll work." Foaly said nonchalantly, going back to his typing.  
  
"And what makes you so sure?" Root demanded.  
  
Foaly looked up and grinned, "Because I'm the smartest, nicest and most talented creature on earth."  
  
-LEP HEADQUARTERS; HALWAY-  
  
Holly and Artemis approached the entrance to the elevator on the main floor that would carry them up to the top floor of the LEP skyscraper- or rather roof scraper as there was no sky beneath the earth's surface- where the Debriefing room was located. Holly pressed the button on the wall and the sliding doors opened immediately.  
  
Holly gestured for Artemis to enter. He did, she followed and situated herself on the side of the elevator opposite to him.  
  
Artemis looked at his hand as he traced his finger back and forth across the stainless steel railing. Holly crossed her arms and looked around as though she were interested in everything in the room except for the adolescent in front of her.  
  
Artemis broke the silence.  
  
"A lot of chrome." He observed.  
  
Holly shrugged.  
  
Artemis chewed his bottom lip absently and tapped his foot.  
  
"I do believe this is the longest time I've ever spent in an elevator."  
  
"Head Quarters has 146 floors." Holly stated matter-of-factly. "And I would normally take the shoots but Foaly didn't want me introducing you to anymore pressure levels for another two days."  
  
The shoots were plexi-glass tubes that ran from the bottom floor of HQ to the very top. You stood inside the tube, pushed the button corresponding to the floor you wished to visit-much like an elevator- and a concentrated amount of pressurized air pushed you up the tube at a speed of 100mph.  
  
Artemis nodded and looked at the floor.  
  
The door chimed indicating their arrival to the top floor at long last and the two individuals emerged from the little room into a large hallway. No chrome this time, the walls were covered with wood from the surface- a very rare and expensive material to attain in Haven- and the floor was covered with a rich red carpet. The hall reminded Artemis of the interior of a hotel.  
  
Several corridors, a hand full of left turns and four locked doors later they arrived at two metal sliding doors. Holly placed her hand on a jelly pad on the outside wall. The doors buzzed and opened.  
  
Root looked up as the two figures entered the room.  
  
"Short!" Root said, "You're late!"  
  
"Sorry, sir." Holly replied, "We had to go around to the side entrance of the building. Some officers conveniently had a situation right outside the front door."  
  
Foaly walked over.  
  
"How nice of you to join us again, Fowl." He said.  
  
"Nice to see you again, Foaly," Artemis replied. Then he smirked, "Or are you going by 'the smartest, nicest and most talented creature on earth' now?"  
  
Foaly grinned.  
  
"My memory activation code," he remarked, "A subliminal message of sorts."  
  
"Clever. They've passed a law to make that illegal now, or haven't you heard?" Artemis countered, although he knew that it would make no difference.  
  
"We follow different laws here, Mud Boy." Foaly said. "Or haven't you heard? And since when has the law had any importance to you?"  
  
"This is no time for small talk," Root intervened. "We've got a serious situation on our hands."  
  
"Is that why you've brought me here?" Artemis asked, "The LEP, a force of unparalleled power, needs the help of Artemis Fowl II."  
  
--  
  
A/N: SUP PEOPLE!?!? Do you like that chapter? ::nudges you:: I think you do! ^-^ Somebody asked me if there would be fluff soon... What is fluff? Is that like when the people start getting all cuddly and stuff? Or is it like corny mushy stuff that would never actually happen in actual life? I've always been a little confused about that... well, yes, Artemis and Holly are going to get 'cuddly and stuff' pretty soon but I'm gonna make it believable! Anyway though, sorry I took so long to come up with this chapter but I after I got over my flu I had serious writer's block and I couldn't think of how to continue... but yah, it came to me last night and here it is!! WHOOHOO! Now I can keep going. 


	9. Artemis' Diary

A/N: Ok this is not a sequential chapter or anything. It's a few excerpts from Artemis' diary so we can get the 'plant thing' sorted out. Ok? Ok! Here we go!  
  
Excerpt from Artemis Fowl's diary, disk 2 (encrypted)  
  
My parents are taking a vacation to the South of France, or 'time off to get reacquainted and catch up on things' as my father says. Although my father only returned to Fowl Manor two months ago, I think that some time away will be good for him. It will benefit me as well for without his watchful eye I will have all of the privacy I need for carrying out some illegal activities I've been planning.  
  
I can't understand why my father has suddenly taken such a dislike to unlawful practices. Perhaps he had a bad experience during his absence. After all, it was by breaking the law that his fate had come about. Well whatever nonsense has brought about this new notion of right and wrong with my father has no effect upon me.  
  
It is lucky for me that Juliet is on a break from her wrestling career that she is pursuing, for Butler is in no condition for any body guarding duties as of yet. Juliet has already agreed to accompany me on any venture I may aspire to. I'm planning somewhat of a heist that will take place in western Germany although 'heist' is a hardly an adequate word to describe what I have planned. However I can say no more of this event as I will not trust such information written down- not even in an encrypted message.  
  
Excerpt from Artemis Fowl's diary, disk 2 (encrypted)  
  
Germany was a success, but I had expected nothing less. Juliet performed her duties well although she seemed a tad uptight at times. Nobody will ever replace Butler. I do hope he is feeling his old self soon. My plan took longer to initiate than I had planned and my parents are due to return in two days so I will risk no more ventures at this time. Instead I think I'll take this time to upgrade my hacking software as it is becoming a bit outdated.  
  
Excerpt from Artemis Fowl's diary, disk 3 (encrypted)  
  
My parents returned from France two days ago. Imagine the guilt I felt when my father credited me for 'upholding the new found family honor' while he was gone. He is talking about our crime-free lifestyle once again. I have no recollection of feeling guilt before, especially for going against the rules. Something must be wrong. I think I'll take a break from any active crime for a few months; however I still plan to upgrade my software.  
  
I suggested to Butler that he go to see a doctor but he just assured me that there is nothing wrong with him and not to worry. I do worry though. It is obvious that he is suffering from some respiratory complication.  
  
Juliet is leaving for the United States once again for a wrestling match so I will have to make do without adequate protection, but as I have decided to lay low for a while this should not pose much of a problem.  
  
Excerpt from Artemis Fowl's diary, disc 3 (encrypted)  
  
There is undoubtedly something wrong with me. I keep having these strange dreams that are centered upon the event of being lost or searching for something. According to Psychological studies this indicates loss, confusion or forgetfulness. I've thought long about this and now that it comes to it I have felt all of these things. In fact I have had a nagging apprehension that I have forgotten something of considerable importance but I have tried to ignore it. Not only that but I'm finding that I'm drawn to such things as works of fantasy in art and literature for no apparent reason. I am feeling a stronger perception of the outdoors and nature that surrounds me and I spend a lot of time looking out the window instead of working on something of importance such as my software which I still have yet to upgrade. I think I will pay a visit to the library and check out some books on psychology to see if I can't find a way to sort out what these new feelings mean. Perhaps I will be able to unearth this important thought that I have seem to forgotten.  
  
Excerpt from Artemis Fowl's diary, disc 10 (encrypted)  
  
I have deleted all entries I have made during the past two months or so as they were filled with discoveries I made studying psychology and were of little consequence. I am no closer now to discerning my thoughts or discovering hidden memories than I was 10 weeks ago. So I have decided to conclude my studies as I do not wish to waste any more potentially valuable time. I haven't made any profits in quite sometime. Perhaps I will finish upgrading my software and do a few deals in the black market.  
  
Juliet has decided not to pursue a career in wrestling after all. She claims she becomes too homesick. On a selfish note I'm grateful for her decision but it's an unfortunate one; she could have gone far. I am not sure what she plans to do with herself now but a girl like Juliet should have no problem with whatever path she chooses to follow.  
  
Excerpt from Artemis Fowl's diary, disc 11 (encrypted)  
  
I've sold 100 copies of my software through the black market thus far. I've made a total of 599,945 U.S. dollars. However crime is bringing me no more satisfaction than it was before I gave it up the first time. Perhaps I am merely feeling ill. In fact I think I fancy a nap at the moment.  
  
Excerpt from Artemis Fowl's diary, disc 12 (encrypted)  
  
I received an e-mail today from a former associate. He is apparently selling some type of new poison developed from a mixture of poppy seeds and other plants. Needless to say I turned down the offer; I despise such things as poisons. What use are they? There are far more efficient ways to kill. However, there is significance to this e-mail; the concoction of various potions from plants is an ancient practice and just now coming back into use. In fact there are many botanists today who spend large amounts of time traversing rainforests for new types of plants which they believe hold the key to curing deadly diseases. My new found fascination with nature and disinterest in criminal acts could prove to be useful after all. These attributes plus my prodigy mind could easily be put to use here. I think I will pursue this unconventional idea for a while.  
  
-- How is that? Does that clear everything up? I hope so. I have to thank isilme for this idea. Thankyou! She suggested a flashback. This is probably not what you meant but it led to the idea anyway so thanks. It's kinda a flashback... or rather would be if he hadn't written it down. Thank goodness Arty keeps diaries... lol^-^ Anyways, I'm working on the next chapter. 


	10. Building Plans, Shattering Feelings

A/N: Hi, hi, hi. Okay I'm changing this Time Stop deal here. Thank you ppl for pointing out that you must be artificially put to sleep and can not otherwise change you state of consciousness... (Mental note to self: READ FIRST BOOK AGAIN!!) Yah, I haven't read Artemis Fowl for like a year now and I forget stuff.... sorry!  
  
--  
  
Artemis shook his head in disapproval after hearing the whole story from Foaly and Root- partially because they had spent most of the time interrupting each other and arguing over inconsequential details, but mainly because he was disappointed in the improvident means that the LEP had taken to prevent a situation like this from happening.  
  
"You do realize that you have set yourselves up as easy targets don't you?" Artemis pointed out, "To have the entire force of the LEP centered under Ireland."  
  
"Very observant of you, Fowl," Foaly said in fake admiration.  
  
"Well I don't give a flying gnome's ass about where we are!" Root said, "What I want to know is how to get out of here!"  
  
"That's the easy bit," Artemis said, "But you have a bigger problem."  
  
"We do?" Root asked incredulously.  
  
Artemis tapped the table with his finger.  
  
"I understand you want this affair to be kept secret."  
  
"For as long as possible." Foaly confirmed.  
  
"It will not take long for everyone to discover that they have been lied to."  
  
"What do you mean?" Root asked eyeing Artemis suspiciously.  
  
"The Time Stop is designed for use when the mind is unconscious or otherwise for very short periods of time-as in a day or so, correct? This Time Stop, however, is presumably set up with the intentions of lasting much longer. As you and I both know, the effects of the Time Stop is draining on the body's energy. A prolonged Time Stop will take a good amount of this energy thus reducing the citizens of Haven to exhausted heaps on the floor. So what then, will you do, when they fall asleep?"  
  
"Nonsense," Root blurted confidently, "It's impossible to fall asleep in a Time Stop."  
  
Artemis raised an eyebrow, a smile creeping into his features.  
  
"Naturally, yes," he admitted, "But artificially it is quite possible."  
  
--  
  
Holly padded quickly along the hallway, heading back towards the Briefing Room with two coffee cups in hand.  
  
*Get me a coffee, Captain Short,* Holly thought bitterly to herself, *I want sugar, I want milk, whine, whine, whine...*  
  
She was a Captain, D'arvit! Why was she fetching beverages for Foaly and Root? She had risked her life bringing Artemis back to Haven and now she was being booted out of the conversation to get caffeine drinks!  
  
--  
  
Root's face darkened, Foaly drummed his fingers absently.  
  
"So what you're saying," Foaly summarized, "Is that when people go to sleep they'll wake up to find themselves in an unpopulated Haven while the rest of us are still over here."  
  
"Au contraire," Artemis corrected, "They will wake up and find themselves in the middle of nowhere. Haven is locked within the Time Stop and no fairy will be able to return until it has worn off."  
  
"We can't wait that long." Foaly stated, "This Time Stop is set up for a month. Not only will that drain a crucial amount of power but a whole five years will have passed around us by that time."  
  
"Then you have only one choice." Artemis said matter-of-factly, "You'll have to be sure that they remain either conscious or not until we're through."  
  
The door opened and Holly Short entered with the requested coffee. She handed a cup two parts sugar and one part milk to Root and the other plain coffee to Foaly.  
  
"Well done Short." Root said.  
  
Holly grumbled to herself and took a seat across from Artemis.  
  
Seeing Holly, Foaly frowned.  
  
"Wait just a minute." Said the centaur suddenly, "Holly fell asleep at the terminal. And you were asleep when we brought you here. But you haven't escaped the Time Stop."  
  
"Great!" Root said, "We brought a sadist back into Haven for nothing!"  
  
Artemis' brow furrowed in thought.  
  
"You mentioned that there was a flare shoot open to you- a gap in the Time Stop?" Artemis asked looking to Foaly.  
  
The Centaur confirmed with a nod of his head.  
  
"Then I suppose that inferring that the Time Stop is at a slight imbalance due to that gap would not be a far-fetched assumption?"  
  
"It's plausible." Foaly agreed.  
  
"I am to assume that this imbalance has feasibly weakened the Time Stop and will allow us to fall into sleep albeit a very shallow sleep. It may potentially cause us to fall asleep at most inopportune times."  
  
"What do you suggest we do then, Fowl?" Root asked impatiently.  
  
"I suggest you drug a team of LEP troops and send them to reboot your machine." Artemis replied sardonically.  
  
"But there's still the issue of the consistent state of consciousness thing." Foaly pointed out, "So even if we do drug a team of LEP troops, as Fowl has suggested so bluntly, they wouldn't be able to wake up again until we're free from the Time Stop."  
  
"Let's look at the situation." Artemis said, "We are able to fall into a shallow sleep when we shouldn't have this ability at all, so maybe we would have the capacity to wake up as well. However, I wouldn't recommend taking the risk."  
  
Artemis tapped his lower lip thoughtfully.  
  
"Perhaps if we were to travel closer to the surface through this open shoot that you speak of, the Time Stop wall would be thinner and thus enable us to go into a deep sleep and wake up again on the other side."  
  
"You're basing a lot of your reasoning on hypothesis, Fowl, but it sounds reasonable," Foaly admitted, "But what if it doesn't work- then what?"  
  
"Then we move to plan B." Artemis stated, plainly.  
  
"There is no plan B..." Root grumbled, haughtily.  
  
"Well then it will have to work." Artemis said audaciously.  
  
"Right," Foaly said clapping his hands together, "Time to make a plan."  
  
--  
  
Artemis could feel his eyes growing heavier. How long had they been sitting here talking? Foaly had decided to risk another pod to the surface- well not quite. Only half-way as a matter of fact which was why he had agreed take the chance. Another boost of energy large enough to send a pod all the way to the surface would be disastrous to the power supply in Haven and would likely cast them in a blind, melting pot of confusion and adversity- not to mention losing imperative resources and information stored in the LEP's systems. They had also resolved to get this whole crisis worked out in a week, tops.  
  
Artemis was permitted to stay with the LEP for a while longer. In fact he had been assigned to accompany Holly and Root to the main Time Stop system by Foaly's recommendation. Apparently the centaur had thought there should be "somebody with some brains" on the mission and seeing as he couldn't go they would have to settle for second best... Foaly was in charge of upholding Haven while everyone was gone and there was nobody better for the job.  
  
Artemis wasn't sure what the last thing he heard of the conversation was but before he knew it he was fast asleep.  
  
--  
  
"Right, that'll work." Root said, "What do you think, Fowl?"  
  
No reply came and the purple-faced commander looked over to find the 16 year old prodigy slumped over in his chair with his head resting on one arm.  
  
"A little past your bedtime, is it Fowl?" Root said gruffly.  
  
"We HAVE been here for 10 hours, Sir." Holly said yawning. "Maybe we should call it a night."  
  
"You go on ahead," Foaly said absently, "I'm going to type up a few documents, draw up a few maps and heck; Why not try for world domination while I'm at it?" And he began typing away on his computer, the screen illuminating his face with an eerie blue glow.  
  
Root grumbled a bit.  
  
"Fine," he said at last.  
  
"Short, you better get a good night's rest."  
  
"I will sir." She said, getting up from her chair.  
  
"Because I want you and Fowl back here at 8:00 sharp."  
  
"Yes Sir."  
  
"Good now go on home and take Fowl with you."  
  
"What?!" Holly blurted, "You're not serious!"  
  
"Do I look 'not serious' to you?" Root asked, glaring at her.  
  
"No sir, not at all." Holly admitted, "But sir!"  
  
"No buts Short!"  
  
"But why?" She whined, "Why can't he use one of the dorms in Head Quarters?"  
  
"Because Short, we're full." Root said, "And besides, I know a certain Captain who should be happy for this opportunity since said Captain has yet to prove she can handle a situation responsibly."  
  
Holly hung her head, "Yes, Sir." She said glumly.  
  
Holly shuffled over to where Artemis slept and punched him, hard, in the arm.  
  
Artemis woke with a start and turned to find Holly glaring at him. He looked at her apprehensively and rubbed his arm.  
  
"Get up Fowl!" Holly said loudly, "You're coming home with me and I am NOT carrying you."  
  
Artemis sighed pushing himself up from his chair. He stumbled away from the chair, clumsy from fatigue. Holly watched him impatiently, swiveled on her heel and walked swiftly from the room.  
  
--  
  
"I can't believe he's making me do this..." Holly huffed audibly. When the door dinged she pushed Artemis aside, nearly knocking him to the floor, and stomped out.  
  
Holly complained incessantly about Root and being room mates with Artemis for the whole two blocks to her house. She wasn't in the best of moods to say the least. With a temper to match her fiery red hair as it were, a day of narrowly escaping death, severe stress, fear, being excluded from conversations, waiting on commanders and technical geniuses and then being assigned baby-sitting as a cruel and unusual punishment didn't help matters much. On top of it all she was exhausted.  
  
Holly stomped up the front steps and nearly stumbled on the last. She jammed her hand into her pocket and began searching the contents for her keys. Her hand met something sticky and wet. Yanking her hand out of her pocket she stared in disgust as some kind of slug type organism clung to her fingers. The elf growled exasperatedly and peeled the offending animal from her hand. Reaching back into her pocket she found her keys. She fumbled with them noisily, trying to find her house key. As she did so they slipped from her hands. Holly gritted her teeth and silently cursed the world around her.  
  
"Can my day get ANY worse?" Holly groaned. And she bent to pick up her keys but Artemis had already beaten her to it.  
  
"I'm sorry to be such a burden," he said in a genuine apology as he handed Holly her keys.  
  
Holly snatched them from him.  
  
"Don't talk to me, Fowl." She ordered him, "I have to put up with enough of you as it is."  
  
Holly unlocked the door and stormed into her little apartment. Artemis closed the door quietly behind him and flicked on a light.  
  
"Is there something you would like me to do?" Artemis tried.  
  
"Shut UP, Fowl." Came Holly's answer from around the corner.  
  
"No rudeness is called for, Holly." Artemis replied coolly, "I'm simply offering to help."  
  
"D'Arvit Artemis, would you just be quiet?" Holly screamed, glaring at him from around the bend in the wall. A bitter scowl had formed in her features, looking truly out of place on her pretty face.  
  
Artemis was a bit taken aback.  
  
"Am I missing something?" her wondered aloud, "The last time I checked we had been friends."  
  
Holly laughed crudely.  
  
"Me? Friends with you, Fowl?" Holly sneered, "Do you remember what you did to me? You kidnapped me, Fowl. You almost got me killed several times! I don't know your kind well, but where I come from such behavior doesn't promote friendship."  
  
"Well we were on speaking terms at least." Artemis compromised.  
  
"Are we not speaking now?"  
  
"Well I thought-"  
  
"That's just like you, Fowl." Holly said in mock casualty, "Always thinking; thinking about power, about money, about yourself but never anybody else."  
  
That cut deep. Artemis clenched his fists.  
  
"Listen Holly," he said angrily, "You haven't seen me in two years, people change- I've changed! And from what I'm gathering from your attitude I'd say that you have too. What's happened, Captain? I thought we were friends. Was it not you who helped me rescue my father? Hadn't it been you that assisted me in retrieving the C Cube from John Spiro two years ago? I respected you, Holly Short. Do you know how much that means? You're one of maybe five people I've ever given that respect to in my entire life. I cared about you. Now, after two years of doing absolutely nothing to harm you or ANYBODY else, you hate me!"  
  
"Oh I'm flattered," Holly said sardonically, "To have won the respect of the esteemed Artemis Fowl" She tapped her chin thoughtfully, "I wonder if that's worth money... Who was the other four then, Fowl? How about Butler? Juliet?"  
  
Holly laughed cruelly, "You might as well take them off the list, Fowl- I left them behind in the Time field. Quite frankly I'm happy for them; they won't have to put up with a selfish little brat like you anymore."  
  
Artemis stared at her, stricken.  
  
Holly glared, piercing him with her eyes.  
  
"You can have the bed. I won't be using it." And she went out the door, slamming it behind her.  
  
--  
  
Holly Short was fuming mad. Deep down she knew that Artemis had done nothing to deserve her outburst at that moment but she decided that it could be retribution for every bad thing he had done to her in the past.  
  
Captain Short was heading back to Head Quarters out of sheer habit rather than by choice.  
  
*Well that's fine,* She thought, *I'll just go see Foaly*  
  
--  
  
Foaly was typing away on several keyboards concurrently, watching Gnommish symbols dance across his monitors. He hummed a tune to himself as he finished off a document containing information about the Time Stop system.  
  
The centaur stretched and drummed his fingers on his desk for lack of anything better to do.  
  
"Let's see how Holly and Fowl are doing..." He said to himself and brought up a scene from the camera that was monitoring Holly's house.  
  
On-screen Artemis walked had collapsed on a chair and buried his face in his hands.  
  
Foaly frowned in curiosity and he zoomed in a bit. Artemis parted his hands and let them fall into his lap. The boy looked miserable. His eyes were shut tight and his jaw was clenched. Foaly watched as the 16 year old's face contorted from the strain of controlling some sort of emotion. Finally he could hold back no longer and he heaved a shuddering breath. His shoulders shook and his body trembled as tears began to cascade down the side of his face.  
  
Foaly was surprised by a pang of sympathy he felt in his gut.  
  
"I wonder what all that's about..." He mumbled.  
  
Only a few yards behind him the sliding metal doors closed noiselessly once more as Captain Holly Short retreated from the room.  
  
--  
  
A/N: ::does a dance:: I wrote a long chapter! I wrote a long chapter! (kinda....) Did you like it? Oh and, BTW, I don't remember everything about Time Stops because I haven't read the 1st book in a loooooooong time. So I am not sure if Eoin Colfer ever said anything about what somebody would find should they go to sleep in a time stop and then wake up while its still on... But if he did and its not what I said then I don't care. I'm keeping it this way because I need it to make the story work okee dokee? Okay. Hope you liked this Chapter.  
  
P.S. I'm surprised at you people! Holly fell asleep in terminal in the middle of a Time Stop and nobody said anything! I was kind of expecting somebody to be on me about that but I guess not. Not even the Masked Avenger with all of her supreme skill for picking out errors could see this little glitch. Ah well, too late now. Nah nah! I got away with it! ^-^ lol.  
  
P.P.S. I'm in love with the story "The Spirit Sabre" by shadowweaver. I recommend you read it. It's a beautifully written story. 


	11. Thoughts, Tears, and Forgiveness

IMPORTANT: I would like to thank my good friend Thea the Elf for so kindly volunteering to be my beta reader! Yay! Thank you so much Thea!!  
  
A/N: ::hums a tune:: review time! Review time!  
  
Dslguy14: Arrgh!rnHere's an excerpt from the 3rd book.rnrn"this place even had manual key locks, which, despite their unreliability, the Mud Men still used."rnrnI would've thought that you would have made a fairy "key" more hi- tech like a nanocomputer or something like that.  
  
::folds hands placidly:: chill, dude. I have my reasons.  
  
Isilme: very good. did you notice that no one could upload or leave reviews for awhile? or did you get them emailed to you? im not sure what happened to FF.net, but... LOL. rnrnanyway, good chapter. and no, i didn't catch that about the sleeping thing, cause you worked it into the story so well! rnrnaw, poor artemis! thinking that butler and juliet are dead (for now, anyway, before his incredible intellect tells him otherwise! *wink wink* i know whats goin on!) :D rnrnmore please! :D  
  
Oh really? Hmm. I didn't even notice the reviews... yah, I get them e- mailed to me. Thank heavens! What would I do w/o my reiviews;) lol, j/k. Although I do really like them... but I'm not like dependent or anything... heh, n/m^-^ I know... I like to make Artemis suffer^-^ But you gotta admit, its fun to read doncha think? Hehe...  
  
Kalariah: Poor Artemis! It seems like I'm always saying that, but he's so horribly sad, so rejected by Holly. He must be truly miserable right about now. I hopw things improve for him soon. I'm guessing Holly's going to be feeling bad, after watching that little outbreak of tears.  
  
You got it^-^  
  
Miah The Storm Wolf: Oh crap, what if Holly sees that screen? What if Artemis starts talking to himself while on that screen? What if Holly hears Artemis talking to himself while on that screen?  
  
Hehe, good thing the next chapter is up so we can all put our minds to rest, eh? ^-^  
  
Thea the Elf: One question: why on Earth does Foaly have a camera monitoring Holly's house? I find that just a little bit odd. Oh, btw, to get out of a time stop, you have to fall into a drugged sleep. So in the room that Root, Foaly, and Artemis were in, Artemis shouldn't have been able to fall asleep. But I do like the ending. So Holly saw everything? I hope she feels guilty, but in her stressed-out state, I'm not sure if she would really care about how Artemis feels at all.  
  
Camera question- because Foaly is a technical genius centaur guy who is on top of everything so he's got cameras everywhere^-^ Don't worry, its only in her main room- nothing naughty. Security purposes only... well you'll see in a minute^-^ Yah, about the Time Stop thing; two people pointed this out to me, and I appreciate it. That's why the last chapter is changed; I updated my Time Stop idea. Yep Holly saw everything, and you're about to find out how she reacts^-^  
  
Principessa Squish Avina: When I started reading your fic it was almost like you were my sister! And before I say anything else... I love my sister to death and she is the awesomeist!(gotta love made up words) You write almost exactly like her, which is a good thing because she is an awesome writer! And judging by your author notes you act like her! Then there is the short chapters... yeah thats defenitly(sp?) like her. rnrnrnBut anyway... I love your story. It is awesome! I don't usually read Artemis Fowl fics. I usually read Harry Potter! But you have gotten me over to the Artemis Fowl side... after this terribly long review... I shall sign off. PLEASE POST SOON!rnrnrnlots-a-luvies,rnrnSquish  
  
Aww, that's so sweet^-^ Thank you so much^-^ I'm very flattered:) I love my sister a lot too:)  
  
Night: it's beautiful!like all your others.ya know what? i think i've found a song to match the end of the third book,ya know the mind wipe,it sorta what Holly may feel if she loved him(which in my opinion she does and he loves her.) it's by s club 7,i think it's called well i dunno what it called but i think a line of it is this:"Though i pretend that i've moved on,you'll always be my baby,i never had the words to say,you're the one i think about each day.and i know no matter where love takes me to,a part of me will always be,with you."rn ok well that's part of it of what i can remember  
  
It's funny you should mention that, (It's called Never Had a Dream Come True BTW:)) It's one of my favorite songs and I have been thinking of a good way to make it into a songfic for a while too:) I'll post the lyrics on my site sometime soon...  
  
Phire Pheonix: Bull. Really honestly bull. I cannot believe you're ending it there, and I cannot believe the fact that the little button that says go to next chapter isn't there. I cannot wait for more, and if you don't update soon, I'm going to go through your story, pick out every single little trivial thing and bug you about itrnrnSo the solution is obvious, isn't it? Update soon!rnrn*wink*  
  
Eek. I better put up the next chapter then^-^  
  
A/N: I revised chapter...uhm... the last one. So if you've only read it once, and it was before the 14th, then I recommend that you go back and read it again because its very different now and if you don't know what happened you're probably gonna get lost. Anyway, I'm in one of those moods where I start speaking French for no particular reason... So if I put some French words in this chapter just ignore me.. I'm half asleep.. Maintenant commençons le chapitre ;)  
  
-HOLLY'S APARTMENT-  
  
Holly laughed cruelly, "You might as well take them off the list, Fowl-  
I left them behind in the Time field. Quite frankly I'm happy for  
them; they won't have to put up with a selfish little brat like you  
anymore."  
  
Artemis stared at her, stricken.  
  
Holly glared, piercing him with her eyes.  
  
"You can have the bed. I won't be using it." And she went out the door, slamming it behind her.  
  
--  
  
He stood there, the stinging words paralyzing his body. Butler and Juliet were... he just couldn't bring himself to admit that last word. His mind wasn't making a connection, he couldn't believe the painful truth of these words. Butler and Juliet, his two closest and beloved friends, they couldn't be dead.  
  
Artemis felt numb. There was a fuzzy sensation coursing mercilessly through his stomach, up his back and in his hands. His lips were dry and his eyes were burning. There was a dull throbbing pain in the back of his throat. He swallowed hard, squeezed his eyes shut and clenched his hands, digging his manicured nails into his palms to divert his attention away from everything else that hurt.  
  
"No," came a weak whisper from between parted lips, "No."  
  
*Slow breaths... slow breaths... slow breaths...* his mind uttered incessantly until it drowned out every sound in the tiny room and every sense the Irish boy possessed.  
  
Artemis could feel the pressure building up around his eyes, the knot tightening in his throat, but he wouldn't give in. He couldn't give in. Artemis Fowl didn't cry.  
  
"Not even for friends, dearest to him." The prodigy spat, bitterly. He was grinding his teeth so hard that his jaw was cramping.  
  
"No, and why should he?" he sneered, "He has no feelings. All he cares about is gold and power. Aurum Est Potestas. That's all life means to him- three greedy words."  
  
Artemis inhaled deeply and chewed his lower lip absently but fiercely. He stopped only when he tasted the sweet irony taste of blood on his tongue. Irony, just like his current state- a boy with no feelings and yet struggling to contain them.  
  
He was feeling light-headed from fatigue and strain. He shuffled dizzily over to a chair in the corner of the room and collapsed upon it. The boy sat, hunched over, beginning to understand why the term 'broken heart' had come about. His own heart felt as though it were tearing.  
  
*Why am I feeling this way?* His mind chimed erratically, *Holly is probably right- they're better off without me... no, but that isn't true. Butler and Juliet were my friends... weren't they?.... why does Holly hate me so? .... but who wouldn't hate me.... I'm greedy, power-hungry, cold, and devoid of any feelings or emotion... but if that's so... why am I feeling this way...?*  
  
Artemis' lungs ached and he realized he had been holding his breath. He exhaled but his breath came in shuddering gasps. His body trembled from the strain of holding back this river of emotions and his shoulders shook as tears that could no longer be restrained flowed freely down his cheeks. Conceiving that his efforts were unavailing, he gave in, and let out a choked sob.  
  
-STREETS OF HAVEN-  
  
"D'arviting simulators." Holly Short muttered abstractedly as artificial wind buffeted her unkempt hair. Absently she ran a hand through it. It was shaggy, coming to the middle of her long neck and needed a new cutting. She had been meaning to get it done for a few weeks now, but had put it off thus far. She was becoming rather fond of it to tell the truth.  
  
The LEP captain had a lot on her mind, well, to be more precise; she was only thinking a lot about one particular thing- Artemis Fowl.  
  
The scene she had seen on Foaly's monitor kept replaying itself through her head. Artemis had been crying. And it was strange because it wasn't the fact that the obdurate Artemis Fowl had shown such compelling emotion that surprised her, but rather that she had caused it. She was not proud of this to say the least. Those sorrowful tears that ran down his face, his hurt and confused eyes that had held her gaze when she had uttered those venomous words. She had arrogantly announced that she had murdered his closest friends.  
  
"What is wrong with me?" She muttered miserably.  
  
Holly was not the type of fairy who did these things to people. She did not find joy or contentment in hurting others- especially when they had done nothing to deserve it. So, what then, brought about the events of earlier that night? Perhaps, she thought, she was merely tired. She had definitely had a stressful day- more so than usual. But she was a strong character; she couldn't blame her outburst on pitiful emotions like stress. No, it was something else.  
  
Captain Holly Short shook her head sadly.  
  
"Maybe it's my fault, after all." She mumbled.  
  
She remembered the way she had felt when she thought she had lost Artemis two years ago. She was hurting for a long time afterwards, and it was affecting her attitude and performance in her job. Holly had known then that she had feelings for Artemis, perhaps feelings that were a lot stronger than they should have been, and it scared her. She began to force him from her mind, and if ever he were to sneak into one of her daydreams or thoughts she would try to recall something about him that she hated so he would disappear once more.  
  
"I guess, after all these years, I have unwillingly taught myself to hate him." She sighed.  
  
Nearing her house Holly Short, once more, pulled her keys from her pocket. Absently she traced her finger around the shape of the one that unlocked her front door. It was very old, once belonging to her grandfather. It was from the time before advanced modular locking systems were invented. She wanted to update her locks for tighter security, but frankly she couldn't afford it. Not that it mattered much; Foaly had her house rigged with enough security gadgets (including a camera she had just recently discovered) that no fairy in their right mind would dare attempt to break in. But even assuming she could afford the update, she would still keep her old house key. It was something of a comfort item to her in a way.  
  
Upon arriving at her front door, she inserted her rusty key and turned the lock, eliciting a familiar click indicating the door was open. Quietly she turned the knob and opened the door. No sound came from within the room.  
  
The wary captain rounded the corner of the hallway carefully, her eyes taking in the scene before her. The room was dark and silent but for some soft, rhythmic breathing. Nothing was out of place albeit her bed which was rarely made anyway. Quietly, she tiptoed across the room to where she had guessed the breathing was originating.  
  
Coming closer, she saw the sleeping teenager flopped lazily on her bed, rolled to one side. An arm lay folded, supporting his sleepy head while the other rested uselessly by his side. His legs were tucked up loosely, forming a right angle at his knees.  
  
Captain Holly Short came around in front of him and cocked her head a bit, just looking at him, for really the first time in two years. She stared, not admiringly, not cynically; just observing. She clicked her teeth absently as she noted his peaceful expression. He had come a long way, this Irish boy she once knew. His skin was darker and looked healthy and real. His hair looked somewhat fairer at the moment though she couldn't discern whether it was because of sun exposure or the darkness of the room in contrast. His arms looked more reliable- strong. She could see the definition of muscles through the soft skin that concealed them. There was one big difference though- she remembered from when he had been mind-wiped, the look of peacefulness that graced his features when she had ordered him to sleep under the Mesmer. Holly recalled how she had been reminded once again of the Irish boy's age and how he was still merely a boy under that heartless character that he chose to masquerade. Now, however, he wore the same peaceful expression; his face slack, the thought creases on his forehead vanished, yet he no longer looked like a child. Artemis had grown up- he had changed. And although even the character he embodied two years ago was a lot more compassionate than the soul-less 12 year old she had first encountered, this 16 year old was no longer the same Artemis she had come to know.  
  
"I'm sorry," she whispered hesitantly, and brushed his cold, damp cheek. She bent down so she was eye-level with the sleeping adolescent.  
  
"I didn't give you the proper chance." She pursed her lips, thoughtfully. "I'll try again. Please forgive me."  
  
And with that, Holly Short, Captain of the LEP pulled a blanket up around the sleeping figure then went round to the other side of the bed, crawled in and fell asleep.  
  
--  
  
A/N: ::drums fingers:: hmm... that was fun. To be perfectly honest I had no idea what I was going to do with this chapter but sometimes it's best to write when you're really tired- the ideas just flow. Well, anyway, once again, read the last chapter (Building plans, shattering feelings) because your going to be lost if you don't. I hope you liked this chapter! 


	12. A Rekindled Flame

A/N: Hi, my loyal readers! Hi, people who just discovered my story! Hi, people who don't wanna read my Author's Note!! (haha! Now you won't even know I said hi to you... ah well!) Now I know what you're all thinking 'GEEZ!! ITS ABOUT TIME!!' yah... I'm really terrible... really... Oh yah, I figured some people might want to know what my other account is on ff.net cause I know I've mentioned having written other stories but never actually gave you the username... ^^ Well its Frodos-QT if NEone really wants to know... the stories are really stupid though so yah..  
  
REVIEWS:  
  
Dslguy14: I have been loyally following this story 4 a bit and I have yet another error to point out - well, it could be an error if you do not put something about it in the next chapter.rnrnYou mentioned that Holly had "hair... coming to the middle of her long neck..."rnrnIn the 2nd book, when Chix Verbil is trying to flirt w/ Holly near the Paris, France shaft entrance, it mentions that she had an auburn "crew-cut".rnrnThis could contradict the description that you already have in this chapter, if you do not mention it in the next. Such as "Holly had decided to let her hair grow..."rnrnAlso, loved the way you fixed my "key" suggestion. :)  
  
... ok, everyone pay attention to this alright? In reply to any questions about the length of Holly's hair: key words right here -- TWO YEARS LATER. Anyway, Glad you like the key deal so far... although I didn't actually fix it... this is how I had intended to write it and I'm not quite done with this idea. I really appreciate somebody being so loyally attentive to my story though^-^ That's cool:) Thankee!  
  
HellFenix: aaw... that's sweet.rnsoo... looks like Holly and Artemis are getting together soon huh?rnand I don't wanna know some of the places that Foaly has hidden cameras. lets hope he's not a hentai...lolrnspeaking of which, did he just see the last scene on camera? Holly is so gonna kill him.  
  
Ha.. ha.. ha.. no, no, no... nothing like that... Foaly only has cameras monitoring the main rooms of buildings- just security. I'm still trying to decide whether or not I'm gonna have Foaly know what Holly did...  
  
LiRA: hey, love your story. I'm not normally into slashy stories of any kind, but this one's alright.rnJust one problem, please try and make the notes and stuff at the beginning of each chapter shorter. There's more notes than story in most cases. By the time I get through those, there's only about half as much actual story to read.rnOtherwise, it's a really good fic, hope you update again soonrnrnPeace ,out  
  
Well, I'm glad that you like the story:) I've had a few people tell me now that I make the notes too long and thus I don't have as much story... but the truth is that I only have a certain amount of the story thought out at one time so whether the notes are there or not, you'll still have the same length of actual story. And besides, some people like the notes so... yah. Personally, I'm not a note person either. But the length of notes is not gonna change the length of the story.  
  
Kalariah: I'm glad Holly's decided to give him another change. They are good for each other, even if they don't realize it at this point in time. I hope Artemis doesn't go all cold and brutal when she tries to apologize or be nice to him.  
  
Hmmm... ::taps chin thoughtfully as an evil glint enters her eyes:: lol, j/k... I won't do that to you guys.. hahaha.... ::sigh:: .. maybe.  
  
Ice Raider: The Fowl family motto is Aurum Potestas Est, by the way. not Aurum Est Potestas.  
  
Well, I copied it straight out of the book, so you might wanna check that again. And besides, Aurum=Gold, Est=is, Potestas=Power. So it wouldn't make sense to say Aurum Postestas Est cuz that would mean Gold Power Is (Which, if you translated it from Yoda-ish, it would mean that Power is gold and it STILL wouldn't make sense...lol). Don't worry bout it tho- you saw how confused I got w/ the Time Stop thing!! Heh..heh... ^-^  
  
flamaria13: you have 148 reviews, and, no offense, but some people have written better stories than you and have less reviews.so dont use the excuse that you dont have enough!its been over a week since you last posted. so get busy writing!  
  
Well gee ^^'' *scratches back of head* I've never said anything about how many reviews I hav but thanx for telling me anyway.... I guess?  
  
katie janeway: Very nice. When's the next update?  
  
Uh....... right about now!  
  
-HOLLY'S APARTMENT-  
  
Artemis tossed fretfully in his sleep; having a nightmare which took place in his own home, Fowl Manor. He found himself in the kitchen with Juliet who was talking to him while mixing the contents of a pan on the stove. However, what she was saying or what she was cooking Artemis didn't know. Then Butler came into the room, walked over to Juliet, whispered something to her and gestured for Artemis to join them. Obediently, he found himself walking over to learn what his life-long friend had to tell him. Once he came close, however, Butler's face contorted into an evil snarl as he grabbed his principle around the throat and began to shake him. Artemis tried to call to Juliet but she simply laughed, picked up a knife and walked towards him; twirling the deadly blade menacingly between her long slender fingers.  
  
Somewhere behind the seven foot bodyguard a fire flickered to life and began making its way towards Artemis' two attackers. He tried to warn them but no air could escape through his throat Butler held in a death grip. And so the fire engulfed both of the Butler siblings and Artemis was dropped to the floor. Unable to think of anything but his own life, the 16 year old prodigy scrambled backwards from the bright red flames that licked the air inches in front of his face. He watched as his friends were swallowed in the dancing red and yellow flames, and tears ran down his face as hot as the fire that sucked the life from the two figures in front of him.  
  
Both of his friends were gone but the fire did not cease. It had developed a taste for human life from the two souls it had devoured and the white-hot flames were hungry for more. It crawled towards the terrified teenager, searing the tiled marble floor, until Artemis' whole body was pressed up against the kitchen wall; pushing, pushing- trying to get just a little further away from the bloodthirsty flames. Just then the wall ignited behind him and he was a victim to the fire.  
  
--  
  
Holly was sleeping quietly when what felt like a fist hit her in the middle of her back. She was awake in an instant, instinctively going into defensive mode. The startled elf noticed the tossing figure next to her and lowered her guard. The sleeping teenager seemed to be troubled by a dream. Beads of sweat had formed on his furrowed brow and he was shaking and moaning something about fire. Desperately, she grabbed his shoulders and began shaking him.  
  
Artemis' eyes snapped open only to find darkness once more but it did not concern him- the most prominent uncomfortable element of the room was the sweltering heat. The delirious Irish boy struggled fitfully to remove the piles of blankets that covered his body. Holly Short noticed his intentions and helped peel the blankets off of him. Once they were away, Artemis lay sweat-drenched and panting. New tears rolled down his face as he mumbled bits of meaningless phrases in his heat-inflicted delusion.  
  
Captain Short watched, feeling helpless, as Artemis suffered from the remnants of whatever dream had been causing him such distress. Wide eyed and frantic, Captain Holly Short felt frustrated just sitting there and doing nothing to improve the situation. Hesitantly she reached out and smoothed his sweat-slicked brow. Slowly and carefully she pulled the trembling body close to hers and began to rock him, whispering soothing words against his tousled raven hair.  
  
--  
  
The LEP Captain opened her eyes and wondered what had caused her to wake this time. A soft sigh drifted to her ears and she looked down to find Artemis nestled up against her, sleeping. If this discovery wasn't shocking enough for the drowsy elf, she still had her arms wrapped loosely around the sleeping form as well. Absently she began running her fingers through the Irish boy's jet black locks as she settled back down next to him and inhaled the scent of his hair. She sighed contentedly; he smelled nice and he was so warm. She could feel herself drifting off to sleep once again when she caught herself and stiffened. What was she doing? Opening her eyes once more, she looked at the teenager, still sleeping peacefully. She pulled away, feeling dizzy and rather confused.  
  
"I'm just tired." She sighed as she sat up. The front of her pajama top was sticking to her and her hair was matted. Holly swung her legs over the side of her bed slowly and stood up. The elf's legs felt stiff and her eyes were still heavy but she didn't feel like sleeping anymore.  
  
"I'm going for a walk." She said quietly but firmly to herself and walked out into the hallway, pulling an overcoat from a closet and wrapping it around her body.  
  
--  
  
Artemis was beginning to feel restless again as some form of security seemed to slip away from him in an instant. He then endured something around ten minutes of fitful half-sleep before he finally gave into wakefulness. Lifting heavy eyelids and blinking sleep from his bleary eyes, Artemis tried to focus the haziness in the room before him. The teenager sat up in bed and subconsciously took stock of the room. For the most part it was the same as the night before except that the bed now looked slept-in as the sheets were all twisted and lay in a messy pile at the foot of the mattress. Holly's coat was still gone so it was probably safe to guess she had not returned, unless she came and left again. To be honest, the Irish boy could not have cared less either way at the moment. His mind was still permeated with the intense emotions he had experienced throughout the previous evening, made worse only by his own dreams in which he could still not escape the guilt and loss he felt for his lost companions.  
  
The notion of climbing from his position on the ancient mattress on which he had slept had only began to crawl into the corners of his thoughts when the creaking of an opening door could be heard from the entrance way. Looking up Artemis found himself staring across the room at a motionless Holly Short who seemed to have frozen in the midst of hanging her coat and was simply gazing at him benignly. Artemis frowned slightly, wondering what it was she wanted; she stared as though she expected him to say something to her. He was about to when, upon closer examination, he noted thoughtfulness in her eyes. His expression softened some and in that moment the feeling that had been in her gaze vanished and she went about hanging her coat again.  
  
"Still in bed, master Fowl?" She asked casually.  
  
Artemis let out an exasperated sigh, swung his legs out of bed and onto the cool surface of the floor. Upon trying to take a step forward the Irish boy found his feet to be entangled in a mass of blankets that had managed to slip from the top of the mattress during the night. Artemis barely managed to catch himself before crashing to the hard floor but with a bit of hopping and much stumbling, he was standing on two feet once again. Holly shook her head disapprovingly.  
  
"You still haven't got your feet about you, have you Fowl?" She asked.  
  
When Artemis raised his head to look at her she noticed his eyes were a bit swollen from crying.  
  
Artemis feigned a smile, "Congratulations, Captain Short. You seem to have succeeded in discovering yet another one of my faults. Though I tend to wonder how very difficult that is as I seem to consist solely of said flaws." He retorted, shooting her an angry look.  
  
Holly didn't answer, instead she continued to stare at his eyes- the blood- shot sclera and puffy lids surrounding his deep icy gaze made the color stand out like a blue flame among the red.  
  
Artemis' insolent glare modified itself into a confused stare.  
  
"What?" He demanded.  
  
Holly blinked.  
  
"What? Oh. No, Nothing." Holly shook her head and turned away.  
  
Artemis sighed disdainfully and commenced buttoning up the front of his shirt that had fallen open during the night.  
  
"You know, Holly, I-" He began but broke off when he noticed Holly was no longer there. Artemis looked around the small room, wondering where she could have gone when a tap on his shoulder startled him. He turned to face Holly once more, feeling rather discomposed. The elf held a small compact in her left hand, about the size of his palm.  
  
"What is that for?" He asked, staring skeptically at the little white container.  
  
Holly looked at her hands and turned the compact over a few times.  
  
"It's redness remover." She stated plainly, looking back up at Artemis. The Irish boy nodded slowly and dubiously.  
  
Holly opened the lid of the compact, revealing a small, green screen with multicolored flashing lights and dials around the perimeter. She expertly flicked a few switches and tapped several buttons to turn the screen into a reflective surface. Smugly, she held the compact up so Artemis could see his reflection.  
  
The chagrined teenager exhaled and closed his eyes gently. When they opened again they were downcast, looking at the floor about 3 feet from Holly's sock feet. The elf's face softened and that familiar feeling of guilt began nagging at her heart once more.  
  
"Listen, Artemis..." She said tenderly but he shook his head listlessly and looked at her through hurt eyes that seemed to cry 'how could you do this to me?' from their glacial blue depths.  
  
Holly's nose stung and she felt as though she might begin to cry as well.  
  
"I..... I stunned them. They weren't conscious." She said numbly. Artemis raised his head a fraction of an inch.  
  
"They wouldn't have felt anything... their deaths would be painless." She looked up at the 16 year old prodigy uncertainly.  
  
Artemis' mouth hung open, dry and wordless.  
  
"Artemis?" Holly asked hesitantly as she took a step towards him. "What's wrong?"  
  
The Irish prodigy grabbed her arms firmly and looked at her with deadly seriousness.  
  
"Is that true Holly?" he asked pleadingly and shaking her slightly after each sentence. "You stunned them? Is it true?!"  
  
"Yes, I-I did!" She said, tears forming in her eyes, "I'm so sorry!"  
  
Artemis let out a choked laugh as he released Holly and ran a hand through his raven black hair. He turned in a slow, aimless circle, as though he intended to go somewhere but decided against it. He laughed again; a relieved, nervous smile spreading on his tear-stained face. The confused Elf just stared equivocally at the teenager as he paced the room, seemingly happy about something.  
  
"Artemis?" She asked uneasily, "What's going on?"  
  
Artemis laughed again, realizing how confused Holly must be feeling.  
  
"They're alive, Holly," he explained, hardly able to believe his own words. "Don't you see? To escape a Time Stop you must fall asleep. You didn't kill them, you saved them."  
  
--  
  
A/N: this was kinda corny beyond belief... but wutever... did you kno that i've had this story written for like 4 months? Heh heh heh... *ducks flying heavy pointed objects* sorry people ive jus been... preoccupied.. well anyways, umm... I don't kno if ill be able to finish this story cuz like.. im really busy and ive sorta lost interest in AF for now seeing as I don't have a lot of time to devote to my little fanfiction endeavors.. would anybody be interested in becoming the new author of this? And writing the story from here? Adunno... just an idea. Well thanks for reading. This is for u guys ^^ 


End file.
